Speech Impediments
by shikaandtoshirofan
Summary: Sometimes the greatest things come in the most least expected packages, even if you don't ask for them. At least that's what Hinata Hyuuga is learning. A Viktor Krum and Hinata Hyuuga Fanfic!
1. The Start Of the Triwizard Tournment

Speech Impediments Chapter 1: The Start of the Triwizard Tournament (a Harry Potter and Naruto Crossover)

Coupling: Viktor Krum X Hinata Hyuuga…maybe side couplings later…

Author's note: Yes I know this couple may weird, deranged and would never happen BUT hey this is my story…so if you don't like don't read please…I mean Viktor was the big tough guy but I mean he DID go for Hermione right?... And don't lie to yourself you KNOW they would be cute ^^ I hope you enjoy it and reviews are highly appreciated! :D Also excuse my poor spelling :D

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot! If I did own Harry Potter and Naruto things would change drastically XD

Let's start off with 3rd person's P.O.V….

The wizarding world was abuzz with excitement! The Quidditch world cup had only finishing weeks before the famous Triwizard tournament was to commence, causing there to be frenzy! Not only would the great Viktor Krum from Dumstrang have a chance to compete, but a new mystery competitor (from a land unannounced to the public) would be the only person to travel from his or her land to compete for the competitor's school (the school only decided to send one person and that person was to be their champion). All eyes were on the Prophet for even a bit of leek on the mysterious competitor but no such story was written.

On the starting day of the tournament students of Hogwarts piled into the Great hall to welcome the guests to their castle.

"This year we will also be welcoming some special guests to our school. Let us welcome the beautiful girls of Beauxbatons Academy of Magic" announced the booming voice of Albus Dumbledore. A large group of tall, beautiful, blonde haired women entered through the large wooden doors of the great hall, dancing their way to their seats; a large portion of the male population gaping at them as they sat down.

"The proud sons Durmstrang Institute" A group of large young men strutted down the aisles of the great hall performing an intimating routine with magic staffs causing the population to be highly impressed or scared out of their skin.

"And for the first time ever we will welcome a friend from Japan." Dumbledore continued to boom as he gestured to the door. The feeling of the room intensified; who could be this mystery competitor, who was good enough to be?

The first thing to be seen was a tiny pale hand pushing the heavy medieval door open soon followed a small body frame covered with a lavender cover hoodie and navy capris and then finally a pale rounded face with clear eyes and long, shiny midnight hair.

The room started to fill with whispers. The competitor was really this little girl? She didn't even look of age for the contest nor did she look strong enough to take on someone like Viktor or even someone like Cedric or Harry!

She was pretty, small and fragile, it appeared as if she could be crushed by the hard challenges of the triwizard tournament, so why did her school send her? With all the eyes of great hall looking upon her a tomato red blush slowly creped onto her cheeks.

A certain arrogant blonde Slytherin, Draco Malfoy raised his voice and told his friends "If that pathetic little creature can be allowed to enter the contest so should I, she looks like a complete and total wimp!" he challenged boldly.

Some of the Slytherin table turned to look at the daring boy while the rest of Hogwarts and its guests having not heard him looked in amazement as the blushing girl spun towards him large veins appearing around her clear eyes.

"I-I should let you know that people of my type have hearing of s-supernatural extent, I have hear every word you have just spoken. If you wish to challenge me then go right ahead. I was sent here and told to compete. I will not back down that is my nindo!" Shot back the voice that everyone least expected, she sounded determined but signs of a stutter and weakness could still be heard, yet despite this she still stood strong. Her shy stance and changed completely she was completely focused. She was just staring back at Malfoy with intensity.

Viktor's P.O.V

As I finally took my seat, I waited patiently for the "mystery" competitor to arrive. It was ridiculous how have the wizarding world had already decided it was my duty to take on this competitor and the rest of the undecided champions before I had even been selected as Dumstrang's champion, they were many other candidates suited to take the champions position why must it always be me? Yet the surprise of the competitor's identity even had me guessing.

"And for the first time ever we will welcome a friend from Japan." Dumbledore continued to boom as he gestured to the door. I watched intently as the grand door slowly opened to reveal a fragile young woman with long midnight hair. She slowly walked awkwardly into the room and started to walk towards a seat in the 'Hufflepuff' area. She was very pretty but she was so small; looked about 16, was blushing as she walked. Surely there was something more to this girl. Japan wouldn't put all their hopes of winning the cup in an unworthy champion; she _must_ have the brain of a prodigy or exteme speed to make up for her physic.

But then I saw her spin around suddenly to look at a bleach blonde haired slytherin. Big veins slowly formed around her opaque eyes. "I-I should let you know that people of my type have hearing of s-supernatural extent, I have hear every word you have just spoken. If you wish to challenge me then go right ahead. I was sent here and told to compete. I will not back down that is my nindo!" She challenged him. She stood tall and her small figure was quite ready for a challenge.

"Vhat?" I askedto myself. (XD I love his accent) What was with this wizardry on her eyes? Did Japan's wild card rest in her eyes? I had to figure out what they did.

"Mr. Malfoy, please do not offend our guests, people of Ms. Hyuuga's kind are very proud of their abilities and don't back down to challenges." He explained to Malfoy. He then turned to face the entire crowd again."In any case this is Hinata Hyuuga and Japan has pre-selected her as their champion which all of us have accept due to her circumstances. You will see her skills in due time. But instead may I request you perform a short routine to your seat as the other schools have done Ms. Hyuuga?" Dumbledore requested loudly for the entire school to hear.

The girl's, well Hinata eye veins had already vanished and she took and step forward and bowed politely to the Teachers. I smiled slightly. Bowing in respect to your elders was surely a good custom of Japan. "S-surely, Dumbledore-sama" she replied with her head still bowed.

Her feet moved to an offence position. Her head shot up and the eye veins reappeared and unbelieveable a blue substance started to leak out of palms. This caused me to notice something; the girl didn't own a wand! Was the blue substance actually what magic looked like in its pure form? Was she actually performing magic without a wand? Was that even possible? Surely there was more to her then what met the eye.

End of Chapter! Please let me know what you thought!


	2. Japan's Wildcard

Speech Impediments Chapter 2: Japan's Wildcard?

Coupling: Viktor Krum X Hinata Hyuuga…maybe side couplings later…

Author's note: Yes I know this couple may weird, deranged and would never happen BUT hey this is MY story…so if you don't like don't read please…I mean Viktor was the big tough guy but I mean he DID go for Hermione right?... And don't lie to yourself you KNOW they would be cute ^^ I hope you enjoy it and reviews are highly appreciated! :D

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot! If I did own Harry Potter and Naruto things would change drastically XD

Sorry this took so long to update! I've been working on another story which I'll post soon, It's for Shaman King (Lyserg Diethel is awesome!)

Thanks to **xartxisxaxbangx,** KabeHinata-Lover2, SilverInk, **yuuchan001, Green Cat Claw, GoddessSumizofVenus, silverfox37 and luvsasuhina4eva **for reviewing! Please if there's anything you'd like me to improve or anything that seems a little OOC please tell me and I'll be happy to comply! I also promise to make the spelling better this chapter! :D Oh, if you haven't guessed this takes place in the 4th book of Harry Potter and in the Shippuden part of Naruto! So that makes Viktor, 18 and Hinata, 16?

Let's start off with Viktor's P.O.V….

Viktor's P.O.V

Her feet moved to an offence position. Her head shot up and the eye veins reappeared and unbelievably a blue substance started to leak out of her palms. This caused me to notice something; Hinata didn't own a wand! Was the blue substance actually what magic looked like in its pure form? Was she actually performing magic without a wand?

The room fell silent but you could almost feel the anticipation. The mystery of Japan's wildcard was about to be reviled!

Her body was soon being circled by cobalt coloured energy. It was so mysterious you could swear it was a thick as a cloud but you could look through it like clear water, as it circled around her the temperature of the room plummeted and I felt uneasy.

More and more energy built up as she started to raise her arms at about shoulder length on either side of her body and then stopped abruptly. Her eyes wide open with alert. Her knees bent slightly in preparation, body facing sideways, arms out to her sides, palms facing straight out still leaking cobalt energy; she looks likes she's preparing for a fight. What could she possibly want to show us?

"D-Dumbledore-sama, for my performance I need you to stand still for a moment, If you don't mind." Hinata requests politely. How could Dumbledore have any relation to her act?

"Alright, I am a patient man so I should be able to; just make sure not to hurt me." Dumbledore jokes as he complies.

Putting one foot forward she lunges and raises her back arm so her arms formed a diagonal line. With one swift movement she swipes her foot around to her back causing her twirl. Her midnight coloured hair coloured flowing around her; as well as the substance which flowed into two continues ribbons originating from her palms. She swipes her foot back again and continues to twirl this time the ribbons getting smaller.

She twirls again, and again and again getting faster each time and the ribbons of energy grow thinner every revolution. At a steady pace she twirls down the main pathway of the Great hall damaging nothing even with all the power circling around her. It was like some kind of demented dance, her form stayed consistent as she spun; dizziness not even hindering her at all. Hinata spun so quickly and so gracefully, she looked she was flowing like the water through quiet stream; it was captivating.

As Hinata picked up speed she began to resemble a human tornado of black, purple and blue hurling towards Dumbledore. All of a sudden a rush of wind hits my face as Hinata finally stops with both of her arms stretched out in front of her face all of the blue needles now line up perfectly in front of her hands. With a mere flick of her fingers the needles shoot like a Quidditch snitch towards Dumbledore. What was she doing trying to kill him? Yet all he did was stand there waiting for them to come..I couldn't just stand there!

"Vhatch Out!" I bellowed swinging my legs over the bench and pulling out my wand but the needles were too fast I had no choice but to let fate play this out. Uproar came out the mouths of nearly everyone in the room. But the needles were too fast to be stopped. But instead of pelting Dumbledore; the needles just barely missed him, grazing his robe and crashed into the wall behind him. Hinata stood up straight and her eye's relaxed.

"Dumbledore-sama c-can you move to the side please?" She asks sweetly.

"Gladly" Dumbledore replies while sidestepping. To my astonishment, behind him is a rough outline of him edged out in the needles. A few had strayed off the path and fell a bit short of the fall, but I mean no one is perfect right?

Gasps and star struck faces are exchanged in the crowd. Within the blink of an eye the needles disappear and the only remains are the holes they caused. I looked over to the bleach blonde Slytherin from earlier and he was already looking away, arrogantly explaining to his friends that she merely was "lucky" and that had nothing to do with skill at all. He seemed a bit stuck-up but I decided to ignore it for now.

My mind quickly drifts back to Hinata's performance. That power was so mysterious, she_ was _a wizard right? How could her power be so different from ours? She seemed so _practiced ._Perhaps that was only since she was going to be sent to compete for Japan and she had to train diligently to get the spot, Japan was very serious after all they wouldn't send a joke candidate.

Although I couldn't let go off the thought that if I was chosen to be Dumstrang's representative _that_ would be my competition. But of course, every magical citizen of Bulgaria would proudly declare me there savior and champion before the Goblet of Fire even decided the champions of the other schools. Therefore they'd naturally believe I could take any opponent on. Not that I was ungrateful for their support but sometimes it was quite ridiculous.

After all the ruckus was silenced by Dumbledore, Hinata was asked to sit with the Gryffindor's temporarily. She dusts herself off. A small blush returns to her face as she walks awkwardly and tries to find a place to sit. She looked rather like a lost puppy looking for its owner because she had this look off nervousness like she just couldn't go and ask someone to move over for her. Was this the same girl that I saw almost nail Dumbledore 2 minutes ago?

Hinata's P.O.V

Dumbledore-sama requested that I sit in the table with the 'Gryffindor' group. Thank Kami I was briefed on which house was which. I felt insecure sitting with the people I had just performed my charka needle technique for; would they be afraid of me?

I tried to walk as casually as I could and find an opening to sit but sadly everyone was packed together leaving no extra room for me. As I searched around I couldn't help but be drawn to all the wizard culture; the floating candles, enchanted ceiling, the vibrant colours of the castle and the exotic aroma of their food. It was a bit too much to take in at one time and I found myself getting even more caught up in everything.

Out of nowhere I sense two people sneaking up behind me. Perhaps I should pretend I didn't notice them and be scared when they tried to just so they wouldn't be afraid. Of course, within seconds both of my arms are linked with two arms belonging to 2 ginger haired twins. They are quite a bit taller than me and have brood body structures.

"Well Hello there, Ms. Hinata" The first greets

"What are you doing there standing there like a git; you know you can just sit where you want right?" The second continues. I notice that their voices sound so alike it's almost uncanny.

"U-um thank you, but I don't think, I know where to sit" I replied slightly dazed by the fact they were now dragging me forcefully to a table.

"Well, why didn't you say so? George, I do believe it is our duty to escort this lovely lady to a table." The first proclaims.

"Why of course Fred! Handsome chaps such as such should be more gentlemen-like anyway." George volleys. They continue to drag me to who knows where, but I find myself being glad to have such spontaneous people around to guide me. Once they finally reach a spot they are happy with, they plop me down on a bench and sit on either side of me.

"Well, Miss Hinata that performance was quite amazing!" George compliments starting a conversation

"True that, it even put that weasel Malfoy in his place!" The other laughs.

"I bet you even had Viktor Krum shaking a bit" George yells patting me roughly on the back.

"T-thank you" I say bowing my head. "But who is this 'V-viktor Krum'" I ask with curiosity.

"Your competition, of course!" They reply simultaneously

END CHAPTER! Hope you liked it!


	3. I Don't Need Your Concern

Speech Impediments: Chapter 3 "I don't need your concern"

Coupling: Viktor Krum X Hinata Hyuuga

Author's note: Yes I know this couple may weird, deranged and would never happen BUT hey this is my story…so if you don't like don't read please…I mean Viktor was the big tough guy but I mean he DID go for Hermione right?... And don't lie to yourself you KNOW they would be cute ^^ I hope you enjoy it and reviews are highly appreciated! :D Also excuse my poor spelling :D

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot! Naruto and Harry Potter are not mine (how life sucks XD)

Hinata's P.O.V

"Well, Miss Hinata that performance was quite amazing!" George compliments starting a conversation

"True that! It even put that weasel Malfoy in his place!" The other laughs.

"I bet you even had Viktor Krum shaking a bit" George yells patting me roughly on the back.

"T-thank you" I say bowing my head. "But who is this 'V-viktor Krum'" I ask with curiosity.

"Your competition, of course!" They reply simultaneously.

"R-really where is he?" I asked looking around at the array of wizards. Fred grabbed my head and positioned to meet the gaze of a young man. He had a rather brood build, a dark brown military haircut and a gaze to match it. He looked fearsome to be exact but on the other hand this tournament wasn't about just strength but mental readiness and magical ability. As well his spot in the tournament wasn't set in stone yet. I just didn't want to have to hurt anyone innocent, luckily the tournament wasn't much of a concern for me in this mission, but on the other hand neither was the school's students.

"Think you can take him?" They smirked coming a little closer to me snapping me out of my train of thought.

"i-I haven't even seen his magic yet, it's hard to tell. But please excuse me for asking you this but why do you even care I'm not even your school's champion." I question. It was a rather good thing to ask considering how overfriendly they were being with me. Maybe my suspicion of them was a bit paranoid but it better to be safe than sorry.

"Why, what a great question Ms. Hinata! Well you see we have a ….business proposal for you" Fred says slyly putting an arm around my shoulder

"W-what did you have in mind?" I ask suddenly being caught off guard. They had no idea who I was so why would they want to make a deal with me.

"It's rather simple really. We tell you the secrets of the school, help you, even give you some insider information and all you have to do is advertise for us." George continues also putting his arm around my shoulder as if showing me his vision of the world.

"Advertise what?" I asked trying to retreat a bit but sadly the twins had my surrounded.

"Our joke shop" They reply with two of the goofiest grins I had ever seen. "You can start by wearing this t-shirt!" They say as they pull an oversized t-shirt which read 'Weasley's Wizard Wheezes' in large crimson letters.

If the other people in the clan saw me actually considering this offer they'd have me disowned. But the first rule of any mission was to gather information and sadly this was the only way to do that.

"F-fine, but can you at least make one my size?" I ask blushing looking down at my feet. Suddenly the twins look at each other dumbfounded.

"Mate… did she just say yes?" Fred exclaims turning to George.

"She did! This is great! Imagine how our sales will go up if we have a _triwizard champion_ advertising us! God I love Japan~!" George announces jumping out of his seat.

"Yes, it's nice to know I'll h-have some support. Would you mind giving me a tour of the school? All the halls look the same." I laugh trying to start some small talk. I could probably find my way around using my byakugan but it would probably be a good idea to lay low.

"Of course, as well we'll have to show you our secret headquarters if you're going to work for us. As well as some secret passages so you can get around faster. We have this school totally figured out" Fred gloated

"U-um perhaps we should eat first" I suggest trying to politely stop their train of thought before it started.

"Oh yah right" They both reply in unison.

Viktor's P.O.V

I watched with curiosity as the scene in front of me played out. The Japanese champion Hinata had been asked to sit in the Gryffindor group and as soon as she started to walk she already looked lost. How could someone who was so small and shy do what she did. It didn't make sense. Suddenly she was grabbed by two tall ginger haired twins and was plopped down on a random bench and was immediately thrust into what looked like quite the heated discussion. It already looked like Ms. Hyuuga had fans.

But suddenly one of the boys brought her attention to my direction and I found my gaze being meet by Hinata opaque eyes. She looked right at me almost as if she could tell my character with a mere glace. Yet her eyes weren't hostile but kind and even worried. But soon afterward the twins brought Hinata's attention back to them.

The rest of the night went along smoothly everyone was too preoccupied with food to try and start a conversation with me. So if I could tune out the backround noise the night was fairly quiet.

After the feast was done everyone started to end their conversations and head towards the ship so they could sleep. I found myself following along with them until we reached outside. I found myself being surrounded by trees, grass and greenery. How couldn't I notice this on the way in? It kind of reminded me of home. Then I found myself laughing. Even the 'great Viktor Krum' gets homesick.

Instead of walking to the ship like I was supposed I found myself being draw to the nature surrounding Hogwarts. Even though it wasn't as beautiful it was larger, more open and very peaceful.

But little did I know that I wasn't the only one feeling homesick. For there was Hinata Hyuuga sitting in a tree her dark midnight hair flowing freely. She looked quite pretty but I couldn't let my guard down around her not with her ability.

I sat down on grass and looked at the tree where Hinata was sitting. If you looked just over the tree you could see the clear night sky with nothing but the moon illuminating it. Even though Hinata wasn't actually sitting with me it was actually rather comfortable just to know some else was watching the stars with me. It would really be a shame if I had to hurt her in the tournament.

Then I heard then rustle of grass as Hinata jumped out of the tree and land gracefully. How could she do that? That was at least a 12 foot tree! A jump like that could kill a man…

She starts walking back and I run to her and almost blurt out a stream of colorful language as I try to ask how she could that but she merely looks at me calmly.

"I don't need your concern" Hinata whispers as cool as the breeze.

What exactly was she?...

END OF CHAPTER!


	4. Hinata the Salesgirl

Speech Impediments Chapter 4: Hinata the Salesgirl/ Viktor the Detective?

Coupling: Viktor Krum X Hinata Hyuuga

Author's note: Yes I know this couple may weird, deranged and would never happen BUT hey this is my story…so if you don't like don't read please…By the way this Chapter is going to be very important to the plot so be prepared to read :D I hope you enjoy it and reviews are highly appreciated! Also excuse my poor spelling

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot! Naruto and Harry Potter are not mine (how life sucks XD)

Hinata's P.O.V

A few weeks ago I never would have imagined myself in this situation. For it was only a few weeks ago I had been asked to come here by the village. Naturally the best thing to do in my situation was to gather information in whatever way possible. I mean they even taught us that at the Chunnin exams. Information was a key leverage point in any mission and we must do whatever it takes to receive it even cheating.

But this wasn't what I had imagined. For here I stood out in the Hall in a school full of strangers; wearing an outfit complete made by the Weasley twins, and hiding in a secret passage whenever a teacher should pass by. I felt like criminal being tracked down. It didn't help that my outfit was white with large crimson letters on it advertising one product or another. It was like hunting a pink deer in a snow covered forest.

Luckly the twins knew of my inability to take to strangers in embarrassing situations so all I had to do was stand, wear the outfit and smile. I surely hoped they knew more about magic then the stuff they used to make their joke shop products.

"Welcome, Welcome! Get your Skiving Snack boxes! Guaranteed to make you sick whenever you want!" Fred chimes to the public soon after a few older boys stopped to look at the merchandise.

"Imagine get out of classes whenever you want! Enjoy hours of endless free time which can be used for much more productive things!" George continues. A few younger looking boys then stop to browse through.

"Like going and cheering on our friend and colleague, Hinata Hyuuga in the tournament!" Fred continues to bellow, wrapping his arm around me and pulling me into a crushing side hug as if saying 'yah she supports us so take that!' Suddenly all of the people in that hallway came to an abrupt halt. The entire group came running and swarmed me.

"You actually support this!" A few outraged girls question. What was I going to say? I lived by the nindo of never giving up and this company screamed exactly the opposite. But I needed to come up with something fast.

"Um… that is to say… I don't exactly support…skipping classes… b-but umm….." I started. Oh no I was quivering what was I going to say? I couldn't lose my only lead. Then it hit me. I straighten up and prepared for me retort. "I support following your dreams! Like these two twins! T-they've done whatever it takes to get this shop started up and they deserve a bit of s-slack don't you agree?" I asked gesturing to the twins. I looked around a saw a few girls nod and then without another word a large portion of the crowd waddled over to the small 'store' to browse through the array of merchandise. The Weasley twins for the first time since I met them were silenced.

"Hinata, we'll make a salesperson of you yet!" George declares turning around with a 'so sweet its evil' smile.

"T-thank you" I say bowing to them rather unsure of what torture they would concoct for me next.

Viktor's P.O.V

The library…what a wondrous place it was, a peacefully paradise of quiet and knowledge. Here I could finally hear my thoughts and think clearly without Quidditch or fame (not to mention the fan girls that came with it) to bother me ( although sadly the fan girls decided to ruin it sometimes). I would often go the library back home and study up on my subjects so I wouldn't fall behind. But sadly this visit to the Hogwarts library wouldn't be as relaxed, for I had a mission. To find out who or what Hinata Hyuuga was.

According to the information I already had she could; use magic without a wand, control it freely even when it's not in close proximity to her body and use magic spells which exceeded anything previously attempted by any normal magician.

Thinking back different countries had different forms of magic for example Bulgarian wizards sometimes used staffs as well as wands to perform magic. It was a small difference from the other countries but Hinata's magic was much more than that. Was Japan that much ahead of us and we just never realized it? If I could find the secret to this magic, would I be able to us it?

I spent most of my afternoon scanning over the books of the library trying to find any trace of wandless magic but sadly no trace was found. Something wasn't lining up its like Japanese magic such as hers never existed. Only one type of person would want to hide her power. One that was afraid of being found out. Although Hinata looked so harmless, how could she be plotting something?

I couldn't help but let my mind drift to only a few nights before. When Hinata had jumped gracefully and flawlessly out of a 12 foot tree, without a scratch on her. She had simply looked at me with a look of ice and said to me as cool as the wind "I don't need your concern". As if I wasn't necessary, as if she didn't need my friendship and as if the whole bonding part of the tournament was completely useless. Although this voice didn't seem to fit her, neither did that attitude. Everything about her was confusing, contradicting everything else. This mystery couldn't be solved by me alone. I would need help. But for now it was time to call it a night.

As I walk down to the entrance of the school to walk to the ship. I looked up to the sky just as I had done that night I had watched the stars with Hinata's company. It was just as beautiful. Now that I thought about it ever night since then I had come to look at the stars before I went back to the ship and Hinata was never there, could she be avoiding me? Although I looked for her at that same tree ever night since. Then suddenly a soft voice interrupted my thoughts

"Wingardium Leviosa" It said. This voice was soft and gentle. I looked around and saw a familiar wave of midnight hair. Of course it was Hinata standing by her tree.

She was using the levitation spell but amazingly she was not wielding a wand. Why would she be practicing such an easy spell when she could use more advanced magic? I ran up to a tree close to hers and hide behind it the best I could.

"That's one spell down. Hopefully by the time I leave I can learn all the spells I need" Hinata mutters. All the spells she needs? What does she need them for? Was Hinata really here for the tournament?

FIND OUT IN THE NEXT CHAPTER!


	5. A New Beginning

Speech Impediments Chapter 5: A New Beginning

Coupling: Viktor Krum X Hinata Hyuuga

Author's note: Yes I know this couple may weird, deranged and would never happen BUT hey this is my story…so if you don't like don't read please…:D I hope you enjoy it and reviews are highly appreciated! Also excuse my poor spelling

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot! Naruto and Harry Potter are not mine (how life sucks XD)

3rd Person P.O.V

It was the calm before the storm; the quiet before the battle cry, the last days before the kick-off of the tournament. Hinata Hyuuga was probably supposed to be trying to crack the code of the first match but she and everyone else knew the challenge already, it didn't take a genius to know that someone had leaked the secret. It was human nature to try to get the upper hand. Sadly for the opponent, they didn't know how to really gather knowledge for themselves but used their connections. But it all worked out for them so she guessed it didn't matter then.

The challenge in questions; fighting a dragon (Wizards were so over the top sometimes). What kind of dragons were there; who was Hinata to know that? It was strange to come to this world and see all the things she was told as stories right before her eyes. The people of the village had never really thought the wizards to be important until Tsunade had taken over the village and had sent Hinata on this mission.

Hinata knew she should be looking down at the library right now looking up dragon types and their weaknesses but Hinata would take the same route anyway. Don't get to close and paralyze it before it can touch her. Although she was already sure of this she couldn't let the others know that. If they found out about her calmness they'd be sure to keep an eye on her more than they were now. She would keep a low profile until they could no longer do anything about it.

Everything had to run smoothly until _they_ got there. No suspicion would be aroused and it was her job to figure to out how to convert as many spells as she could.

But before that she had to help sell. Sell what you may ask? Whatever Wizard wheezes were…..

Harry P.O.V

One thing was for certain, this tournament wasn't about playing fair. Not only was I told about the first task, I was pretty positive that Viktor, Fleur and Hinata already knew. Viktor and Fleur's teachers were there to make sure that they'd had the best possible chance to win. As well after Hinata's demonstration of power I was pretty sure that she could at least pull that bit of information out of hat was easily as a bunny to a muggle magician.

Let's face it, all the competitors are older and have more strengths than I do. Now wasn't the time to be noble in the process of gathering information. Although making a few allies (even if they only lasted for a task or two) couldn't hurt. Obviously Cedric and I should band together as the Hogwarts champions (despite the fact the whole school was against it). But Hinata had no teachers with her and not only that Fred and George seem to be having quite the business now that Hinata was with them. Her power was mysterious which meant that we could take a chance and find out the real extent of her power. But on the other hand all that wand less magic stuff could have been just an intimidation tactic. Most of the other competitors wouldn't risk it but something gave me the idea only one of them would be daring enough to make an alliance with Hinata, and if I wanted to make an alliance with her I'd have to be friendly with him as well.

My suspicions were confirmed as I saw the tall, broad silhouette of Viktor Krum approach Hinata and the Twins after a long day of 'sales', how Fred and George got her to help them was unknown to me.

I would wait until after Hinata and Viktor were friends and then try to make an alliance with Hinata, Viktor and Cedric as well, I didn't know Fleur enough to talk to her but at least then they wouldn't be all after me.

Viktor's P.O.V

I had gotten in too deep with my investigation of Hinata. I knew that now, I should be practicing for the first task but right now this was more important. Hinata was up to something, I needed to find out what. Getting her on my good side would be a great advantage to me if she wasn't planning something horrible.

My feet started moving of their own accord to where I had heard Hinata had been helping those Weasley twins with their Joke Shop. I soon realized that me seeing Hinata in public may not be the smartest idea so I decided to take the long way around and meet her and the twins after their supposed "store" closed.

Now was my time to be friendly I guess, although after awhile I soon figured out that the Weasley's were huge Quidditch fans and it wouldn't take that much convincing to get on their good side. Hinata was another story…

I knew a smile would only make me look fake so I just decided to stay neutral as I approached the trio as they were packing up. With an abrupt clearing of my throat they all turned around to face me. This is when I also noticed the flamboyantly coloured uniform the Weasley twins had managed to shove Hinata into. With a solidly colour bright crimson t-shirt and jeans (of course with the shop's logo imprinted everyway) Hinata could blind a person on sight. Not only was she wearing this, I also observed the pile of hats, bracelets and other nick-nacks (all of various colours of the rainbow) that she was probably wearing previously.

"Um, If you vouldn't mind I'd like to talk to Hinata please." I requested facing the twins. They were actually both of fair height and bulk they might actually be good Quidditch players. Although there flaming red hair might be rather to spot across a pitch.

"Why are you asking us? It's her decision" One of them replied.

"Thank you Fred" Hinata replied softly picking up her pile of nick-nacks. "I will speak with y-you on the condition it won't involve the tournament."

"Thank you, I will try to remain off that subject" I replied mimicking her polite tone, I knew it would be good for me to read her tone and act accordingly. I knew that the topic of the tournament would probably become the end result of what I wanted to ask, but at least the conversation wouldn't_ start_ with the tournament.

The twins had gathered all their merchandise and were preparing to leave the area they had reserved for their shop but commanded Hinata to wear just one of the pile of hats around the grounds, for more publicity. I found it rather strange that they didn't have any problem with me randomly showing up. But then it all made sense to me. Both of them winked to Hinata and handed her another hat…..that could only mean they wanted to make a victim of me too….. I noted to never visit this shop again.

As Hinata decided to walk around the grounds outside, I was also surprised to see Hinata in such a calm manner around me. There was also a layer of shyness with her, but she wasn't more shy than usual. She had the uncanny habit of fidgeting with her hands but I figured that may have been hereditary. After all the times she had avoided me or even the one time she told me to not be concerned about her this was the only time when I think I had seen her natural.

When I thought about it longer, I realized that even though I came here to expose any evil intentions she might have had….I may have been a git overly judgmental. But all least all was to be found out.

"Hinata, I have found you out" I said the best way to face this was head on. "Why do you want to learn simple magic skills without a wand when you can use your own advanced magic?" Hinata retreated from her position walked beside me and her body language was rigid.

"So it was you watching me the other night" She replied, with a small pause she closed her eyes and a fierce glaze met mind when she went to meet my accusing one. "The smallest of things can make a difference, that's all you need to know" She continues coming back to her spot beside me and continued to walk.

Hinata was smart, she knew the body language to use to intimidate someone, in fact she was intimidating so I would just have to be intimidating back. I hated being impolite to girls but this must be done. She knew I had the upper hand and was playing me as she could to make the situation disappear. I knew I was safe though. I was smart as well; two people could play Hinata's game. I had the leverage of being both a champion and a celebrity what could she do to me without getting in trouble for it? But on the other hand I might just be able to have her on my good side of her own accord

"Hinata, look I'm a champion of my school and I have skills, and power enough to be useful. Obviously you're powerful enough to be useful to me as vell. A person that has an ally yes vill cause more talk but will release some of the tension about your solitude around other people. Either we learn to trust each other and be helpful or you decline and it VILL be documented don't have a doubt about that." I said with the same stern tone I used when talking to my Qudditch mates before a game. I knew that I'd said I wouldn't talk about the tournament but not everyone is always truthful.

Hinata was obviously startled at my sudden sternness. In fact the only real conversation I'd have with her was asking her if she was alright that one night she gracefully jumped out of that tree to a supposedly fatal drop. Then her face became serious again.

"But first you must assure me that you aren't planning to harm anyone" I interrupted giving her a bit of a softer look; I should try to stop looking like such a jerk for a bit.

Suddenly a melancholy look appeared on her face and she spurted out this: "No, I wouldn't imagine hurting them. All I want to do is protect the people, weither they be muggle or wizard."

That look of melancholy, that sign of weakness for some reason made me want to believe that she was honestly sincere.

"If you want to make a truce that's f-fine with me, on the condition, that you believe me and will keep my intentions a secret. Although if you want me to fight alongside you I must first know that I can t-trust you with my life and that you trust me with yours. Teamwork involves trust as I'm sure you should have realized with Quidditch." She said looking me in the eyes. " Are you prepared to do that?"

I thought of all the memories I had of Hinata so far. I knew that I couldn't trust her with my life, but maybe…just maybe I could one day. The way she looked when I asked her about protecting people, and even her on-off bravery made me want to believe this. I hoped on day that I could believe Hinata and see her prove me wrong as she protected the wizards but for now I had to keep my eyes open.

END CHAPTER!


	6. The First Task

Speech Impediments Chapter 6: The First Task

Author's note: I know that most of you guys are probably like "WHOA THIS CHICK IS STILL ALIVE?" right now, because it's probably been about a year since I've updated… but I've never really finished a fanfic that I've started and I really want to commit to this story and finish it off. Thanks so much to all those who may still be reading! I hope that I can keep a steady stream of chapters coming out. I'm pumped for the chapter after this because it's the Yule Ball Chapter! You guys thought things were complicated now, wait t'ill I bring Naruto, Neji and Kiba into this mess! And finally, I'm going to put this chapter in 3rd Person P.O.V pretty much the whole time. When you see *** it means the P.O.V is following a different person or a scene change. There's also going to be a lot more Harry in this chapter because I've pretty much ignored him thus far, so sorry if there's less Viktor! Warning this Chapter is REALLY long!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot of this story and the strange notion that Viktor Krum and Hinata Hyugga make a good couple. I believe that I am the only one on fanfiction that has written a fanfic for this pairing (please send me a link if I am wrong!), which kind of makes me sad *tear*. I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter!

3rd Person P.O.V

"_Accio Dictionary!" _The young wizard commanded, as the large volume soared through the air, crossing the short distance from one end of the Gryffindor common room to the other. The book produced a most satisfying _thump _as it flung itself into the wizard's outstretched hand.

"There you go Harry, your finally getting it!" Hermione cheered. She was glad that she could be helping out her friend in preparation for the approaching first task, but all the practice had been pretty exhausting. The young duo had been up for several hours past their normal to practice the summoning spell Harry would need for the first task of the tournament the next day. It looked like Harry shared his friend's exhaustion because he stifled a yawn as he stretched out on the plush coach opposite of her.

"Thanks, but I still need it to work for task. My Firebolt is going to further away than the stuff in here." Harry replies his voice still reflecting a yawn. "Plus it has to go through the entire castle. What if it, I don't know….gets stuck? Like if a door is closed or something?" He suggested, his nerves from earlier in the evening making an unwelcomed visit.

"Harry, calm down, your Firebolt will find its way to you, as long as you do the spell like you've been doing here. Remember all you have to do is _focus." _Hermione reassured. "In any case, you really should get some rest before tomorrow. You'll need it." She advised, getting up from her armchair and stretching. "I'm going to bed anyways, so I wouldn't be able to help you out." She yawned, as she made her way to the girl's dormitory.

The boy was left alone for a moment. The room was completely silent except for the crackling of the fireplace and his soft breathing. His heart began to beat faster and faster, and somehow faster still and yet he was more tired than he had been in a long time. He needed rest. The Boy Who Lived felt the warm skin of his feet sliding against the cold, hard stone of the stairwell before he climbed up to bed, where he would fall instantly asleep and see nothing but darkness.

The big day was finally here, the official start of the challenges for the Triwizard Cup. As each school rallied for their champions, friendships and loyalties where tested as each person was pushed to pick a favorite. Most choose to root for the champion of their school but a few people had drifted from the crowd and had chosen a favorite from another school, such as the grossing population of young girls who preferred Viktor Krum over Cedric Diggory and had decided to throw their pride for Hogwarts to the sidelines in pursuit of pure good looks and talent. These people had been giving a bad reputation and were known throughout the student body as 'traitors'. But two such 'traitors' had a different reason for cheering for a different champion other than their own; Fame.

The infamous Weasley twins had chosen Ms. Hinata Hyuuga as their champion of choice. They still were hoping that their friend Harry Potter would be successful in the tournament but the twins needed Hinata's help to advertise their joke shop. They knew that Harry was famous and all, but right now he wasn't so popular. Having 'Potter The Rotter' advertise your business wasn't the best idea. Even if he was in the school's good books, he wouldn't be man enough to do half the things the twins had already put Hinata through.

Even with all the business perks, there was sometime more between the devious twins and the shy mystery girl; Friendship. Hinata was kind, helpful and somehow managed to put up with the two gingers. She was shy, but thanks to her help the twins were actually running a legitimate business. So naturally, the twins felt it to be their duty to help Hinata in return. On Hinata's request, they started tutoring her in basic spells and magic, so that she could try to produce it using her form of wandless magic. But the twins were very giving people (at least they thought so), so when the first task finally rolled around the twins decided it was their duty as Hinata's friends to…. _completely_ embarrass her.

To say that Hinata was surprised about the temporary tattoo of the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes logo on her forehead, was an understatement.

"_O-oh good m-morning you two." Hinata greeted pleasantly. "How are you?"_

_The twins smiled deviously as they set their plan into motion. "Oh we're great, love!" Fred announced giddily. "Today's going to be our biggest sales day ever! We got pins with your face on it, "Go Hinata" flags- wait Hinata you look kinda pale….are you alright?" _

"_H-hey, that's not funny! I-I'm always pale" Hinata replied huffed, while crossing her arms._

"_But we mean like… more than __**usual**__." George insisted. "Here let me feel your head…" George lifted his hand and pressed it to the flat of the female's forehead. George continued to press his palm to the girl's forehead, while the design left its impression. The pranksters' companion seemed innocently unaware of what was happening to her, as George continued to 'check her temperature'. _

"_Well, you don't have a fever or anything, you must just be nervous." George explained in a tone that copied concern. It was done! They had actually managed to pull a fast one on Hinata! But then the twins made a grave mistake. As George lifted his hand from Hinata's forehead and saw his handy work, he couldn't help but….giggle. Fred added in a low snort and it was at that instant that Hinata knew the twins weren't quite as concerned for her health as she had hoped._

"_W-what did you two do?" Hinata asked outraged, covering her face. _

_Now the twins had been in the pranking business for quite a long time and they had learned how to deal with the outraged 'customers' of their pranks. But they were also smart enough to know that sometimes explaining your way out of a sink hole caused you to drown. This was one of those times. Before Hinata could even accuse them of their crime, the twins disappeared into a gust of cloud, leaving Hinata with a very embarrassing tattoo and a stomach full of butterflies._

This prank is what led to Hinata's current crisis. She had been able to hide for the half a day before the task but now it was only a couple hours before the event and Hinata had still failed to remove the accursed tattoo from her forehead. Fred and George where in classes the whole morning so she knew that she couldn't ask them to get rid of their own handy work. But on the other hand they probably wouldn't help her until the last minute anyway.

Most of the student body was in the Great Hall eating lunch before the day's main attraction, but thankfully Hinata always packed a lunch for herself of tradition Japanese food that she could eat outside. She knew that she could sneak by most of the teens by covering the tattoo with her long bangs, but she would have to show someone other than the officials her tattoo so that hopefully they would take pity on her and remove it.

As Hinata slide out into the frigid November air, she was reminded just how embarrassed she was by the cold biting at her rosy cheeks. The area seemed pretty empty until she heard the rapid pacing of one of her competitors. She turned to face the emerald-eyed boy and caught a glimpse of his famous lighting-shaped scar. Harry Potter was freaking out.

"D-does, the pacing help get rid of the n-nerves?" She asked the boy softly. He jumped at her question as if just realizing she was there, but he relaxed a bit more when he saw who had approached him.

"Kinda" he replied with a nervous smile. "What about you, you nervous? There's plenty of room to pace here." Harry joked

This was the first time Hinata had spoken to the boy. She really should get to know the boy better since he was such an important part to the mission. But then she remembered her current epidemic.

"I-I'd be doing much better if Fred and George hadn't decided to _this_, this morning" She sighed, as she lifted up her bangs revealing the brightly coloured logo of the twins' company.

"Why, am I not surprised that they did something like this?" Harry said grinning widely. "That's just like them. Do you want me to get rid of it for you?"

"Y-yes please." Hinata pleaded. Hinata had forgotten how amazing magic was. With just a flick of the boy's wrist the tattoo was magically washed away along with most of her fears. "Thank you very much for your help." Hinata said, bowing to her savior.

"Don't mention it. Besides, one of the teachers should be coming for the champions soon; you didn't want to compete with _that_ on your forehead." Harry reasoned. As if summoned by Harry's statement, Professor McGonagall strided across the grass of the grounds towards the two teens. She wasn't her usual cool and composed self, but instead she appeared to be more anxious than even Harry felt.

"Champions, it's time to gather for the first task. Once we get to the arena you'll have time to change into your uniforms, and then you'll be briefed on the…..procedure in the Champions' tent. Follow me."

The tension inside of the Champions' tent was so noticeable it felt like another person in the room. Viktor Krum was standing in the far corner of the tent when Hinata and Harry arrived. He looked even more intimidating than usual, but something was off about him, almost as if he was just staring into space. With a weak parting smile Harry left Hinata to stand beside his fellow Hogwarts champion, Cedric on the other side of the tent. Viktor stiffened as he was shot back into reality by the entrance of the two champions. In response he shuffled closer to his indigo-haired ally.

"Your vere almost late, you know." Viktor commented gruffly to the girl beside him. Hinata was about to respond when she was interrupted by a very perky Ludo Bagman practically skipped into the spacious tent.

"Well hello, you lot! It's almost show time!" Mr. Bagman announced gleefully. "Once the audience has assembled, you'll all be drawing something out of this bag here." He continued, showing the group of champions a purple sack made of silk. "What you will be put up against, will be a bigger version of whatever your draw out here, alright? Your task is to use whatever means necessary to outwit your opponent and grab the golden egg!"

Harry and Cedric looked at each other before nodding to , while Hinata bowed her thanks. Meanwhile Fleur and Viktor preferred to give him the silent treatment, while they continued to stare off into the depths of space.

For practically an eternity the five champions listened in silence as the buzzing of the crowd passed by their tent. For that time, the tent was an entirely different world. It made the champions wonder what the tournament would have been like if they merely observing and not actually living the danger. Finally, Ludo Bagman decided to end their torture and walked to the middle of the tent with the purple sack opened.

The three remaining champions in the tent knew that it had been a while since Cedric had first walked out of the tent, signaling the start of the first task. They also knew that when Fleur walked out it would also feel like she had finished the task only a few minutes after she started. In reality it was actually much longer but the time was unfortunately flying for Hinata, Harry, and Viktor as they listened to their rivals compete. So it was no surprise that just like that it was Viktor's turn to battle his dragon. When his named was called he stood up stiffly and looked back to the remaining female in the tent. This female was supposed to be his ally now. So far Viktor had been doing a pretty good job of being a jerk to her sometimes but, it was high time he at least attempted to act like an ally should; supportive.

"I know it's not your turn yet, but….. I know you'll be fine". Viktor reassured looking Hinata square in her mysterious, clear eyes. With a quick turn Viktor turned to face the exit and briskly walked out into the arena where his fate and cheering fans awaited him, without even a glance back into the tent.

Hinata's eyes followed the broad Bulgarian until he was out of sight. To say the least, she was surprised about the sudden confidence Viktor had placed in her. She should have said good luck to him too. He was supposed to fight a dragon called the Chinese Fireball, perhaps he needed all the luck he could get.

"Well, that was weird." Harry remarked looking confused.

"Y-yes, it was." Hinata agreed, rather puzzled herself.

"And yes, Viktor's got the egg!" Bagman announced. "It seems it's your turn Ms. Hyuuga!"

Hinata had been trained to be calm and collected in all situations involving her job, so she managed to exit the champions without feeling that she had to vomit. She couldn't say that was true for most of the other champions.

The crowd was going wild was Hinata stepped into the ring. The crowd was almost restricting as they towered over, and circled the rocky terrain where the young woman was standing. She knew what she had to do. She would simply use her chakra to paralyze the beast as she ran and grabbed the golden egg. At least that was the plan; it seemed that Hinata had underestimated the size of the beast she was facing. The monstrosity of an animal towered to _at least_ twice the height Hinata had imagined it to be. Its tail was long and spiky and shimmered in the unforgiving sunlight. The light reflected off the monster's gray scales and shone into the ring. It was simply the most beautiful, yet terrifying thing Hinata had ever seen.

In order to paralyze something that gigantic she would have to use nearly inhuman speeds. That would arise to much suspicion; she has to come up with another plan. But first, she had to dodge the dragons flailing limps and try not to get burned by its fiery breath. The crowded 'ooed' and 'awed' as Hinata narrowly escaped death multiple times by several well executed jumps and flips. No matter how fast Hinata was, she just was not able to get past the dragon. But suddenly an idea came to Hinata, a most stupid and insane idea, but it might just work.

The crowd gasped and yelled as the young purple-haired champion calmly gave up and stood in the middle of the ring, while several trained wizards scrambled into action. Sadly they were too late. The scaly monster seized its opportunity and let out a mighty puff of fiery breath that engulfed the young girl.

All that was left was silence, disbelief, and denial. All the crowd could hear for a moment was the ringing in their ears. The Dumstrang champion was watching from the area that had been reserved for the champions. As soon as Hinata had been encased in the ball of fire his heart jumped up into his throat and a raw, angry scream escaped his lips.

As the fire cleared people expected many things; ashes or perhaps the corpse of the once beautiful young woman. But what their eyes were met with was a rather large stone that had not been there before and a ball of smoke that appeared right beside the golden egg. Every single spectator was on the edge of their seats as they waited for the dust to settle.

"Wait just a minute folks! Look at that smoke! Could we be witnessing a miracle?" Ludo Bagman announced frantically, as the silhouette of a girl dressed in lavender appeared through the thick smoke cloud. "Stop the presses! She's alive and wait…she's got the egg! How did she do it? That's a miracle if I ever saw one!" Bagman attempted to announce over the screaming and cheering of the crowd.

Somehow the Japanese wonder had managed to teleport herself from inside the fireball to right beside the egg. It's almost like she had switched places with that rock!

"Well Mr. Potter it looks like you've got your work cut out for you! You'll have to compete after Ms. Hyuuga disappeared before our very eyes!"

"Well I can see when our work isn't appreciated." Fred sighed as he slung her arm over Hinata's shoulder after the crowd had cleared out of the arena.

"You're such a party pooper." George continued. "After you popped out of _nowhere_, you should have been like 'I couldn't have done without Weasley's Wizard Wheezes!' and then flashed the tattoo!" George exclaimed, acting out his suggestion for Hinata.

"I mean seriously! Your performance was _lackluster_! It's not enough to just cheat death like that you know." Fred explained sarcastically, nudged Hinata in the arm.

"T-thanks guys, but I should go I'm t-tired." Hinata replied over her shoulder as she turned to leave the ring. She was still pretty miffed at the twins for pranking here that morning.

"Oi! Hold on a sec! You should come with us to the common room; we're already having a party for Harry because of his ace flying this afternoon. We can make it a party for you too." Fred ventured

"A-are you sure that's o-ok?" Hinata asked, turning to face the ginger- haired duo.

"Of course it is! Harry likes ya, I mean rumour has it he got our masterpiece off your forehead." Fred joked. "Oh and bring your egg, we're going to try opening them up!"

"W-well, if that's ok with everyone." The girl replied

"Hey guys! Sorry but we brought another guest of honour! I'm afraid the Boy Who Lived will just have to deal with sharing the spotlight with our Girl Who Lived!" Fred announced as he swaggered into the festive Gryffindor common room.

"The Girl Who Lived? I quite like that nickname, Freddy" George complimented. "What do you guys think? Hinata Hyuuga; the Girl Who Lived!"

"Calm down you two!" Seamus insisted. "Harry's about to open his egg!"

"Alright, on the count of three!" Harry announced.

"One, Two, Three!" The crowd counted.

What ensued from Harry opening that egg was the most painful sound any of the Gryffindors had ever experienced. It almost sounded as if they were listening to someone under the crucatious curse. It brought half the room to its knees, and the other half wasn't far behind.

"Shut it! Please someone stop it!" someone managed to yell.

As the golden casing of the egg came to a close, Hinata could only manage to say one thing.

"I-I hope mine isn't like that."

End of Chapter! Find out what happens next time in the…. YULE BALL!


	7. The Yule Ball: Part 1

Speech Impediments Chapter 7: The Yule Ball

Author's note: Ok guys, now I said this was going to be the Yule Ball chapter, and it _kinda_ is but I decided to split the Yule Ball chapter into two parts. The chapter was going to be super long and to avoid that I divided the chapter into the pre-ball and the actual ball. This is the pre-ball chapter and_ really_ hope you guys enjoy it!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot of this story and the strange notion that Viktor Krum and Hinata Hyugga make a good couple. I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter!

3rd Person P.O.V

"I don't think I can do this Ron." Harry told his best friend. The boys' posture was hunched over as they collectively let out a sigh of defeat as they passed yet another cluster of giggling girls in the halls of Hogwarts. It had only been a few days since news of the Yule Ball had been spread around the school and it seemed that most of the female population of Hogwarts had agreed that they should make life as hard as possible for the guys trying to find dates. The few girls that had not been let into the pact had been bolder and had even asked Harry to the ball (even if they had never spoken to him in his life)! Ron, on the other hand, had not been as lucky.

"We got too! We can't be the only two blokes who show up without dates!" Ron exclaimed as he ran his hair through his trim ginger hair. "Why don't you just say yes to one of the girls that keep asking you?" Ron suggested trying very hard to keep the bitterness out of his voice.

"I don't even know them!" Harry explained appalled at the suggestion. "Most of them are too young or are older than me. One of the girls that asked looked like she could snap me in two!"

"Better than no date, mate. Unless of course there's a _specific_ girl you want to go with." Ron said while a devious grin curled into his lips.

Harry didn't respond to his friend's suggestion. He knew it was true, there was only one girl he wanted to go to the ball with; Cho Chang. But he also knew how _stupid_ that was. She was pretty and a great Quidditch player, which had made her very popular and in other words impossible to talk to without getting swarmed. But every time Harry thought about her going with anyone other than himself he suddenly felt he had the courage to ask her.

"Hey Harry, let me remind you, you just fought a bloody _dragon._ There isn't a girl alive who would turn you down." Ron reminded encouragingly.

"Hermione." Harry replied

"What are you on?" Ron volleyed.

"That's one girl that would say no." Harry answered pessimistically.

"Ok, but she doesn't count." Ron stated defiantly.

"I'm sorry, what don't I count for?" Hermione asked as she ran to catch up with her two best friends.

"Nothing. Harry was just worrying about who he would ask to the ball and-" Ron reasoned quickly.

"And what? I'm apparently not good enough to go to the ball with you guys?" Hermione finished defensively.

"No! It's nothing like that!" Harry answered desperately trying to get a handle on the situation.

"Yah, stop being so paranoid, Hermione." Ron added. Harry rolled his eyes. Sometimes his best friend lacked sensitivity when talking to girls, ok scratch that, when talking to _Hermione_. He knew how this conversation would end.

"Whatever!" Hermione replied as she stalked off past the boys into the next hallway.

"What's her issue?" Ron asked as his eyes followed Hermione until she had completely turned the corner out of sight

"Ok, Harry this'll be a piece of cake. All you got to do is ask for a word alone with her and say one simple sentence. You can do it!" Harry reassured himself unsuccessfully as he searched the corridors for Cho.

After about 15 minutes of walking Harry contemplated giving up his search and asking his fellow students if they had seen her. But as soon as the urge hit he saw flowing black hair out of the corner of his eye. Then attached to the head with the flowing hair was a Ravenclaw uniform and by instinct Harry knew his search had come to an end. Unfortunately, the person he was focusing on was preoccupied with her regular entourage of about 5 or 6 girls. It was now or never.

"Hey, excuse me! Cho?" Harry called as he ran to catch up with the swarm.

"Oh, Harry! Is there something you need?" She replied as she spun around to face the black-haired boy.

"Do you have a minute?" Harry asked

"Sure, what's up?" She asked as she followed the boy out of earshot of her classmates.

"Um….Willyougotutheballwitme?" Harry jumbled.

"Um..can you say that again?" Cho requested hesitantly.

"Well, I was just wondering, um, well… you would like to go to the ball with- uh with me." Harry tried, his eyes fixed to the cobblestones below his feet. All of a sudden the air around him thickened and his ears started to ring. It was almost as if all that mattered in his world at that moment was Cho. For just the briefest of moments there was no Voldemort and no chosen ones; only Harry, just plain Harry asking out the girl of his dreams.

A look of surprised grazed her beautiful face before it turned red. Harry's sprits lifted, maybe this was a sign she would say yes? But right after his spirits were lifted they were crashed into the ground only to be shattered into a million pieces as a look of shame replaced the shock on Cho's face.

"I'm sorry but Cedric's already asked me…. and I said I'd go with him." She finally replied.

"Oh." Harry said unintentionally.

"Yah, sorry." Cho apologized again uncomfortably.

"Oh! That's OK, don't worry about it" Harry said snapping back into reality. "It's Ok, really." He finished

"Thanks. I have to get back to my friends now. I'll see you later, Harry." Cho said as her face lit up with a blush once more and she ran to catch up with her group.

"How could I be so _stupid_!" Harry cried to himself when Cho was out of ear shot. He didn't know where he wanted to go anymore, just so long as he didn't run into Cho or Cedric. All Harry wanted to do was wallow in a corner until after the ball was over. But as a champion he knew he had to be there for the ball. He found himself walking…. and walking…. and walking some more. This was probably the first time since his first year at Hogwarts that he had actually felt lost in the large castle. It was always home to him and no person in their right mind got lost in their own house.

He knew that he should stop feeling sorry for himself and go see Ron and Hermione because they were probably pretty worried about him right now, but at the moment he didn't particularly care. All he could do was keep walking and walking, walking away from Cho, from Cedric, from the Tournament, from everything….. But his morbid thoughts were interrupted by a giggle. Now truth be told Harry's ears were constantly assaulted by the shrile annoying giggling of the female populace of Hogwarts this past week thanks to the Ball but this one seemed different. Almost unnerving…

But as soon as it came, it was gone and Harry was brought back into his silence as he ceased the shuffling of his feet. The boy perked his ears and listened for the shuffling of feet in the corridors around him. But what he was met with was a flash of lavender in front of his eyes and a smiling Hinata Hyuuga. Harry finally understood what had unnerved him about that giggle. It was one of happiness from the girl he had never seen giggle or even laugh for that matter. Not that Hinata wasn't a pleasant person, it's just that she had never seemed overly happy. But right then a smile graced her features that spread all the way too and lit up her mysterious clear eyes.

But Harry's attention was brought from her face to her hands as he heard the familiar crinkle of paper. Harry's throat felt too dry to talk but the boy had to admit he was curious about what could have made this girl so happy.

"H-hey Hinata. What ya got there?" Harry croaked out.

"Oh Harry, good evening. It's a letter from some of my friends back in my village. They sent me a letter to tell me that they're going to come for the Yule Ball." Hinata explained

Ok now Harry was creeped out. That must have been the first sentence Harry had heard Hinata speak without a stutter. People from her village? Where they like her? Hinata was such a unique witch that Harry had a hard time thinking that they're could be more people, even a village full of people that were like her.

"O-oh well that's great Hinata." Harry congratulated half-heartedly. He had to admit that his heart wasn't into anything at the moment after what just happened. But then Harry saw how happy Hinata looked. If Harry had been going to the ball with Cho he would want someone to be happy with him, not gloom around and ruin his happiness like he was doing to Hinata's now. He felt guilty; he should try to be nicer to the girl. Hinata had always been kind to him despite the fact that they were, technically, each other's rivals.

So Harry put on the best smile he could and did his best to be happy for Hinata. Harry realized how hard he must have been trying because the muscles in his lips hurt and what came out of his mouth next really surprised him.

"So, are you going to go to the ball with someone from your village?" Harry asked. Where had that come from?

"There's a boy from my village that I've been admiring for a long time. He likes someone else, but if I could go to the ball with him, I'd be very happy." She replied flawlessly without a single stutter as a blush rushed to her pale features and she stared at the ground.

For Harry that statement really hit home. It sounded almost like him and Cho. Suddenly all the bitterness disappeared and Harry genuinely wanted Hinata to succeed. But then Hinata looked up at Harry and _really_ looked at him for the first time that night.

"H-harry, are you alright? You look rather p-pale….." Hinata inquired. Harry couldn't help but notice her stuttering came back. He didn't want to ruin Hinata's good mood but he knew that if he didn't say anything Hinata would still know something was wrong with him. He so desperately wanted someone to talk to him about it. Tell him it wasn't his fault. That he wasn't an idiot. But he just couldn't do it.

"Oh really? I'm just really tired is all. Trying to figure out that bloody egg." Harry said with an attempted chuckle. She still didn't look convinced that he was OK, but Hinata didn't look like she wanted to press the subject anymore.

"Y-yah, I'm having a hard t-time with it too." Hinata agreed, although the look of suspicion still remained plastered to her features.

"Oh well, tell me if you find out anything!" Harry attempted to laugh as he made his escape down the corridor towards the Gryffindor common room.

"O-ok! M-make sure you get some rest Harry!" She called after him.

Harry was flattered by how concerned and caring Hinata had been towards him considering that it was not too long ago that they were complete strangers. Harry still felt as if the world around him was far, far away but the thought that kept him grounded that night was 'Hinata, I hope you at least get to make your dream come true.'

It was a new day and Harry felt slightly rejuvenated after the previous night's disaster. It was time for Harry to accept that he wasn't going to go the Yule ball with the girl of his dreams and to find a dance partner so that come the opening dance of the champions he could attempt to not look like a _complete _and _total_ git.

It was breakfast time at Hogwarts and Harry and his two best friends Hermione and Ron were heading down to the Great Hall for breakfast.

The three friends weren't very far into the journey when they ran into Japan's champion and their newest friend, Hinata Hyuuga. Harry had told his friends earlier about the letter Hinata had received from her village and they were both very excited to meet more unique wizards from Japan.

Hinata was sitting, leaning against a great stone wall with her knees brought into her chest and another piece of paper in her hands.

"Hey Hinata. Is that another letter from your village?" Harry asked. Harry still felt a certain heaviness but he honestly felt that today he could sound cheerful at least if it was for his friend. But then she looked up and what he saw on her face was what he imagined was his face the previous night. He knew without asking what had happened to his purple- haired friend.

"R-remember that boy I told y-you about last night?" Hinata asked quietly.

"Yes, I do" Harry replied his eyes soft and understanding.

"H-he's going to the ball with the girl he l-likes. Not m-me." Hinata confessed, her voice cracking slightly.

"Hinata, I'm so sorry." Hermione cooed.

"Yah, that guy doesn't know what he's talking about." Ron added.

Harry knew that Hinata now felt the pain he had when Cho rejected him, and obviously couldn't help but sympathize with her. Perhaps, he could tell Hinata about what had happened to him. Maybe, that would make both of them feel better.

"Remember last night when you asked me if I was feeling ok?" Harry questioned. "It wasn't because of the tournament. I asked the girl I liked to the ball, and she told me she was already going with someone else." He admitted looking Hinata square in the eyes as they widened in surprise. She didn't have to say anything, just by that look Harry knew that she understood. They were both date-less now. Wait they were _both date-less _now.

"Hinata!" Harry blurted out due to the sudden inspiration. "Sorry if this is a bit sudden, but would you go to the ball with me?" Harry spluttered out.

"W-what?" Hinata questioned

"I-I mean it's just that we both can't go to the ball with the person we wanted and we need a partner for the dance, so I thought we could go together. As, you know friends?" Harry explained.

"S-sure, I look forward to it." Hinata agreed a bit of the sadness leaving her face and a weak smile turning the corners of her lips up.

"Great. Now let's go get some breakfast." Harry suggested helping Hinata to her feet.

Little did the pair know that someone else did in fact want to invite Hinata to the ball with him. In fact, he had just missed his chance. On his way to ask her to the ball, he had stumbled in on the very conversation that made his request non-valid. Viktor Krum let out a sigh of defeat as he turned away from the teens and the girl that was now taken by his rival and walked far, far away cursing himself for not asking earlier.

END CHAPTER!


	8. The Yule Ball: Part 2

Speech Impediments Chapter 7 Part 2- The Yule Ball

Author's note: Ok finally! The last part of the Yule Ball chapter is finished. Sorry that it took a while. Anyways, in this chapter I _finally_ bring in more characters from Naruto. It may sound like I'm bashing Naruto in this chapter but I really don't mean to. In fact, I never mean to bash ANY characters. If I do it's because it essential to the plot and actually _needs _to happen, and not because I hate the character or anything. Ok now that that's over with, I really hope you guys like it! Feel free to leave reviews and give advice if you want! Thanks to all of the guys who review!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot of this story and the strange notion that Viktor Krum and Hinata Hyugga make a good couple. I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter!

3rd Person P.O.V

After many hours of deliberation and feuds Hinata and her fellow kunoichi, Sakura, Ino and Ten-Ten had _finally_ decided on dresses. Up until yesterday it was just Hinata staying in this secluded side of Hogwarts castle. But the previous day, several of Hinata's friends had come from her village in order to participate in the Yule Ball. The headmaster of Hogwarts was always very kind to Hinata so he had no problem temporarily welcoming the foreigners. Besides that side of the castle had not seen much use for a long time. A large group of her friends and teammates had somehow managed to score some down-time from missions in order to visit her abroad. Fortunately for her, that included her long-time crush, Naruto. But unfortunately, that also included_ his_ long-time crush, Sakura. It was awkward seeing them around and having to pretend nothing was happening, but Hinata still had a reason to celebrate. One of her rivals for the Tri-wizard cup and her new friend, Harry Potter, had invited her to the ball because they had bonded over the fact that they had both been rejected by the people they loved, and decided to go together as friends.

Harry, Hinata and the rest of the champions were required to open the Yule Ball with the first dance. Since, Harry and Hinata were dates for the ball they would get to dance together. A few of the new arrivals from Konaha, especially Kiba and Neji, were not particularly happy about having Hinata dance with a stranger they had never met before. But of course most of the kunoichi were absolutely smitten with the idea of Hinata going on a date, purely for the fact they would get to dress her up. In the end, Hinata ended up with a long, deep purple dress, black ballet flats, and her midnight hair tied loosely in an elegant bun.

Finally it was time for the girls to make their entrance. As Hinata and her friends made their way through the stone corridors of Hogwarts to find their dates, Hinata noticed she was practically the only girl not wearing high heels. She figured it was ninja instinct; never wear anything you can't run in, at least that's what she had been told. But of course if any of the girls at Hogwats asked, she would simply say that they "made her feet hurt". Perhaps it was also to help her out when she was dancing with Harry.

Harry had told Hinata to meet him at the bottom of the moving staircase. She made sure that her friends would meet somewhere else in order to post pone the doom that would come from Harry meeting the leaf-villagers. When Hinata finally made it to the moving staircase Harry was just arriving. The young man was dressed in a traditional black tuxedo, complete with tails and a matching black bow tie. Other than the fancy apparel, Harry was still just Harry. The circular frames, scar, and goofy grin were still where they belonged. Hinata admired the way Harry remained so humble no matter how much fame was thrown at him. He was a different type of hero than Naruto. He was quieter, less forceful, more grounded. Harry wasn't the fireball or the hot head. He was steady and reliable. He didn't stand out as much in the eyes of Hinata as Naruto but the young woman was happy that the wizards had such a person to protect them. But when the time came would he be able to? She and everyone else in the village knew it was coming and they would be there to help the wizards when it did. But in the end it would all come down to this boy. The boy who was right in front of her, smiling kindly, the boy that felt the same sting of rejection, the boy who was now her friend. Can he really stand tall when the world around starts to crumble?

"Hey Hinata. You look great." Harry smiled politely. The thing is that he actually meant it; he was sincere even though Hinata wasn't the person he really wanted to go with.

"T-thanks. S-same to you." Hinata replied. What was really wonderful was Hinata could be honest back. Harry wasn't the person she truly wanted to go with either. They were just friends, enjoying each other's company. But soon they would have to become rivals once again; when the second task came.

"Ready to dance?" Harry asked nervously.

"S-sure?" Hinata replied not quite believing in her response.

"Good. I'm certainly not." Harry continued glumly.

"W-wow!" Hinata gasped as she entered the Great Hall. It was funny she knew this was the same Great Hall she had eaten in every day since she had arrived at Hogwarts, but it did not feel like it. The stone walls were covered with ice and the edges of the floor were dusted with snow. The decorations were perfectly formed ice sculptures. Icicles hung from the ceiling and the sky was snowing lightly. Yet somehow the room didn't feel cold. It was the most beautiful room she had ever seen.

"They did a great job!" Harry complimented, as he spun around giving the room a double take.

"Harry!" Someone screamed as the young wizard felt a rush of air fly past him. "You got to help me!" The voice said as its owner cowered behind him.

"What's wrong, Ron?" Harry asked instantly recognizing his best friend's voice.

"My mom wants to get me bloody killed is what! Look at what she's making me wear!" Ron exclaimed still trying to remain hidden behind Harry. Upon inspection Harry could see what Ron was talking about. His dress robes looked more like a Victorian era dress than anything else. The frilly menace would surely scare off any girl within the vicinity. Hinata stepped over a bit in pity also trying to shield the troubled adolescent.

"Take some scissors to the frills before more people see you!" Harry advised pushing his friend towards the wall. "Hey get goi-woah….." Harry finished dumbfounded as he raised his eyes to find Cho Chang only a few paces away. She wasn't paying attention to him really, preferring to occupy herself with gossip, but that didn't make her any less breathe-taking. Dressed in golden, traditional oriental robes she was the most beautiful that he had ever seen her.

"Woah is right!" Ron exclaimed.

"Y-yah" Harry agreed airily, until he realized that his friend was looking the other way.

"It's Hermione-san!" Hinata pointed.

The once bushy haired, bookish girl seemed transformed as she made her way down the stairs with Viktor Krum at her arm. Her hair was glossy and shiny and hung loosely at the shoulders of her long, flowing blue dress.

"What's she doing with _Krum?"_ Ron exploded. "She doesn't even talk to the guy!" He reasoned.

"I-I don't know either." Hinata said in a small voice. "He never t-told me that he talked to her." She continued.

"W-well, um…. Are you friends coming soon, Hinata?" Harry asked in hopes of lightening the mood.

"Y-yah, they should be here any time now." She replied, scanning the room for the people in question.

"Guys! You're missing the problem! Hermione is fratinizing with the enemy!" Ron exclaimed. "Hinata, you're friendly with Viktor and he didn't even tell you he was going with Hermione! Aren't you mad?" Ron asked softening his voice a little.

"H-he choose not to tell me; and that's t-that." Hinata finished decisively. Suddenly the air in the room felt thicker, and an awkward silence emerged between the youths. Until only a few moments later, when a booming voice cut through the air.

"Hinata-chan!" a cheery voice called from the distance.

Hinata would know that voice anywhere. The energy, the joy and the intensity it could hold made her want to be with him every time she heard it. It was the voice that had saved her. For once the boy wore simple clothes and dressed for the occasion, with a black tuxedo to match the other guys, which replaced his normal orange and black jumpsuit. Naruto would have almost looked normal for once if it weren't for that bright, wide and rather goofy smile of his.

"N-naruto-kun!" Hinata answered trying to keep her composer. With that reaction Harry instantly recognized who this boy was. "You-u made it!" She continued gleefully.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world!" Naruto replied excitedly. "Besides, I get to go on a date with Sakura-chan! Finally!" He declared, pumping his fist proudly in the air.

"Hey Hinata, It looks like it's time for the dance! We better go!" Harry announced hastily pulling his date away. Although he was just improvising, it _was_ actually time for the champions to open the ball.

Professor McGonagall was shuffling through the large crowds of people looking for the champions. When she finally caught sight of Hinata and Harry she let out a large sigh of relief.

"There you two are. No more dilly-dallying, get ready to dance." She ordered them pushing them towards the center of the room where the crowd was already making way for the dance. The pair made their way to the middle of the dance floor and readied themselves for the dance. Out of the corner of her eye Hinata spotted Viktor looking at her from the opposite side of the dance floor over Hermione's shoulder. The twins were right behind him pointing at her, laughing amongst themselves, no doubt teasing her again.

Before she could look around again, she heard the strings of violins cueing the start of a song. She put one slender hand around Harry's neck and the other around his back. Harry did not seem to notice the start of the dance.

"H-harry. It started!" Hinata whispered shocking Harry back into life.

"W-what? Oh!" Harry realized quickly putting his arms around Hinata's waist and moving his feet.

The tune was fast, light and festive. At first, Harry struggled to keep up with Hinata's quick and airy movements but eventually adjusted. They twirled together around the floor along with the other pairs. For the first time the whole night, the young couple was able to forget about the people who had rejected them and truly just have fun and enjoy each other's company and support. Suddenly it felt like they were floating through the air and finally at a peak in the music Harry lifted Hinata off her feet and twirled her in the air.

Slowly but surely, the other couples joined in the dance. In a few minutes, the room was filled with dancing couples. The champions remained in the middle of the crowd and danced until finally the song came to a close. The Yule ball had officially begun.

The music continued in the background and many couples continued to dance but most of the champions and a rather large following migrated to the tables set up in a corner of the hall.

Upon arrival, Hinata was whisked away by several giggling girls who quickly introduced themselves to Harry. They all had rather unusual names like Hinata, so Harry figured they had to be her friends from the village.

What Harry didn't expect was some more of Hinata's friends wanted to have a word with him. But sadly, this conversation would turn out to be much longer and much more terrifying than the previous one.

"Harry Potter, right?" Two young men asked as they approached him. They were both tall, rather muscular men. Neither looked strong enough to be truly frightening, but just enough to create an air of intimidation. One shared the same clear, mysterious eyes as Hinata. He wore his long brown hair in a lose ponytail, and his features seemed cold and serious. The other was tan and had bright red triangles painted on his checks. His hair was a short and messy mop, and he gave off a more relaxed vibe than his friend. In fact, the two boys seemed like total opposites.

"Yes." Harry answered tentatively.

"I'm Kiba and this is Neji. We're from Hinata's village." Kiba introduced uncrossing his arm so he could offer a hand for Harry to shake.

"Um, alright. Nice to meet you guys." Harry replied, politely shaking their hands.

"Alright Potter, we're just going to cut to the chase." Neji stated bluntly. "How do you feel about Hinata?" He finished, shooting Harry a death glare. Suddenly it all made sense. They were giving Harry _the talk._ The 'If you hurt her, we hurt your face' talk! They thought that Harry really had a crush on Hinata!

"Oh wait a sec. It's not what you think!" Harry said in an attempt to defend himself.

"Oh really now? What should we be thinking?" Neji questioned as one of his eyebrow quirked upward.

"We're just friends!" Harry continued desperately.

"That's what they all say!" Kiba accused pointing a finger at Harry's pale face.

"Really! We're just friends. We both didn't have a date so we decided to go together." Harry explained.

"Oh really now! So you didn't want to go with her in the first place?!" Kiba fumed.

"Was she not good enough for you or something?" Neji questioned icily.

"No, Hinata's great and everything. It's just that I like some else." Harry tried.

"OHHHH. I get it now!" Kiba replied. "Poor you." He continued, shaking his head in pity.

"W-what?" Harry asked, puzzled at why the boys attitudes had changed so suddenly.

"You got rejected, didn't you?" The boys asked knowingly in unison.

"U-um…" Harry started.

"Don't worry man. Happens to the best of us." Kiba reasoned as he walked away.

"Sorry for bothering you." Neji apologized as he followed his comrade.

"Hey, wait a sec! " Harry shouted at the pair's backs, but they didn't bother to look back. Harry let out a large sigh of defeat. "What just happened?" Harry questioned himself as he went to search for Hinata.

When Harry finally managed to locate his date, he only met more defeat as his date was being pulled away by the strange girls onto the dance floor. Finally the classical music had ceased and an upbeat band was playing. Harry was sure that the girls just wanted to dance with Hinata for a bit, so he would be patient until they were done. He figured that he should go check up on Ron anyways; his friend didn't look up to par when he had last seen him.

Harry searched the hall for his carrot-topped friend. Fortunately Ron was always easy to spot because of his bright-coloured hair. His friend was slouched in a chair in a far-away corner of the ballroom, his face miserable as his eyes followed Hermione. The girl seemed to having quite a fun time with the Bulgarian champion.

"Mind If I join you?" Harry joked taking the seat next to his best friend.

"By all means." Ron smirked. This sentence was followed by silence, a painfully long silence. It didn't appear that Harry could cheer up Ron. Harry was out earlier in the night with a date, maybe not his dream date, but a still date. He had also managed to dodge humiliation that night. Ron however was forced to wear the ugliest dress robes in existence to a ball to which he had no date, where he would have to watch his two best friends have fun, while he wallowed in self-pity. It didn't exactly seem fair.

"Harry…" Ron started.

"Yah Ron…?" Harry promoted.

"Why him?" Ron asked looking Harry square in the eye for the first time since he sat down, his eyes looked hollow and lifeless.

"I don't know mate" Harry replied honestly. Harry had no doubt to what Ron was referring to.

"If you knew, then you'd be going with Cho I guess." Ron stated bitterly. How did he know that he liked Cho? "I see the way you look at her, by the way." Ron finished.

Perhaps Ron wasn't clueless when it came to love, after all.

"I see." Harry said quietly, he was kind of embarrassed that Ron was able to see through him. But it did make him a little happy that his friend understood him, it felt like that made them closer.

"Look, I appreciate that you came to see me and everything, but I think I need to be alone right now. Besides, you have a date waiting for you. "Ron said pushing Harry off the seat.

Harry hesitated for a bit but knew that Hinata would be sad if Harry never went back for her. He looked back at his best friend and gave him a sincere look of gratitude. At the beginning of the year he and Ron had some troubles, but even after all of the drama, his friend was still there for him.

"Thanks Ron." Harry said softly. Ron merely nodded and started looking at the ground. The thing was Ron didn't know what was behind that thank you. He didn't know just how grateful he was to him. Harry would never be able to thank his friends enough.

Then the youngest of the Triwizard champions turned away from his friend in search of his date.

Finally the Yule Ball was drawing to a close and surprisingly the night went quite well for the pair of Hinata Hyuuga, and Harry Potter. After Harry had cut in and managed to pull Hinata away from her friends they decided to leave her alone and find their dates. They managed to stay dancing pretty much the whole night. It kept their mind off the pairs that were not so far from them. Although occasionally Harry would sneak a glance at Cho, just like Hinata would occasionally sneak a glance at Naruto. But then the other would notice and suddenly they didn't feel alone anymore. Although Hinata seemed to notice something else throughout the night; she felt as if she was being watched.

Midnight was drawing near and it was finally time for the couples to say their goodbyes. At the top of the moving staircase was where Hinata was left after her date had said his goodnights. She still couldn't shake off the feeling she was being watched. She had felt it all night. Time to find out what it was.

"I-i know you're there. Come out now." Hinata ordered calmly.

"Should've know that you vould." Viktor sighed as he revealed himself.

"V-viktor." Hinata sighed in relief. "D-did you have fun with Hermione-san?" She asked

"Yes, I did." Viktor replied sharply. He seemed almost defensive….

"T-that's good." Hinata smiled. "I d-didn't know that you guys talked." She pointed out.

"I didn't know you vere so buddy-buddy vith Potter." Viktor volleyed.

"Oh s-sorry. It's just that we t-talked a lot during the tournament and all. He's really very nice." Hinata offered.

"Don't ve talk a lot?" Viktor asked, quirking one eyebrow upward.

"Y-yes. V-viktor what is this about?" She asked.

"Then, _Vhy_ does he know about the person you like and I don't?" Viktor asked icily. He wasn't yelling, he was past that. The look in his eyes wasn't anger, they were calm. Too calm.

"H-how did you-?"

"I heard you guys talking." Viktor replied. "Vhen he asked you to the ball."

"V-viktor, would you r-really want to hear about things like that?" Hinata questioned. She had no idea that Viktor even cared about her love life. He just never seemed like the type of person that would want to sit down and talk about feelings.

"Yes I do! You really don't understand, do you?" Viktor questioned, his voice softening. But soon all softness within Viktor had vanished and his eyes now portrayed a look of betrayal. "I thought ve vere a team. Friends even!"

"W-we are. It's just-"

"Not as good friends as you and Potter, huh?" Viktor finished as he started to stalk off towards the grounds.

"V-viktor, wait!" Hinata called after him. But it was no use, all she could do was watch the man's back as he walked away from her, into the night.

END OF CHAPTER! HOPE YOU GUYS LIKED IT!


	9. Friends

Speech Impediments Chapter 8 - Friends

Author's note: Alright, now that the Yule Ball is over I believe it's time for a little breather. Time to prepare for the second task! As always, thanks for reading and I hope you guys enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot of this story and the strange notion that Viktor Krum and Hinata Hyugga make a good couple. I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter!

3rd Person P.O.V

"Ugh, do we really have to go back?" Ino groaned. "It's so nice here. He didn't have to cook or clean or have to listen to anyone yell at us for _four whole days_!" She continued, stretching out her arms as she walked. The young blonde kunoichi was the first to take a step on the cobblestones of the courtyard. The entire troop of Konaha ninjas followed her until they all stood in the castle's well kept front entrance. The stone guardians perched on the fountain, stood watch and were meant to welcome them into the building, but right now it was as if the creatures were there to bid them farewell.

"Yah, they sure take good care of you here." Kiba grinned. "You sure lucked out on this mission, Hinata."

"Y-yah. They all are r-really nice to me here." Hinata confirmed, smiling fondly.

"We should head back now if we want to make it back in time." Neji warned.

"Bye Hinata-chan. Good luck with the rest of your mission!" Naruto said, grinning as usual. The rest of the ninjas joined in a chorus of goodbyes, handshakes, and hugs, as Hinata met all of her friends with the same sentiment.

Finally, the group turned to face the lake that surrounded Hogwarts and started to walk slowly homeward bound. They hadn't even crossed the halfway point of the courtyard when they felt a peculiarly large gust of wind whip against their bodies. The ninjas knew that they were alone in the courtyard when they had first entered it, but suddenly they felt another person's presence. None of them had heard a door open either.

"Well it appears that I've arrived just in time." The deep, timeless voice of Professor Dumbledore rang out.

"D-dumbledore-sama! What are you doing here?" Hinata asked, spinning on her heel to face the Headmaster.

"Well, last night I got to thinking what a shame it was that we would have to say goodbye to you all so soon. We could really use some extra help around here for the upcoming task."

"And..?" Neji prompted, wanting the wizard to get straight to the point.

"If you all would be so interested, I'd appreciate it if you stayed just a little while longer."

"We'd be glad to stay a while longer if you need the extra help." Sakura offered politely.

"Are you sure Tsunade-sama would be OK with that?" Ten-ten asked her peers skeptically.

"There's nothing to worry about. I've already set all the arrangements." Dumbledore assured with a hearty chuckle.

"W-well, in that case, why not?" Ino agreed, surprised the old man had thought so far ahead.

"Yah! Now we can watch you compete, Hinata-chan!" Naruto fist pumped excitedly.

Generally, the group seemed to share their sentiments but the quietest of the group, Neji and Shino, looked at each other knowingly. Something was definitely up. Why did the old man _suddenly_ need their help now? Well they would never find out by refusing the offer. Reluctantly the two boys followed their friends back to the massive wooden doors that separated them from the interior of Hogwarts castle.

Cedric Diggory, one of two Hogwarts champions, seemed to be having a surprising relaxing week. Unlike the other champions, there was a spring in his step, a smile on his face, and overall he simply seemed refreshed. Up until a few days earlier, all the Triwizard champions were on edge as the days to second task grew shorter. Their energy and patience were whittling down as they all desperately tried to decode the wisdom that the golden egg was supposed to provide. None of them seemed like they had cracked the code. Until suddenly, Cedric became more normal, he started to hang out with friends more, he looked more at ease.

To the trained eyes of Hinata Hyuuga, these actions could only mean that Cedric was the first to crack the code. She was determined to find out the clue even if it meant she had to use Cedric to do so. After all, she was a ninja, and ninjas do what they have to, to get the upper hand. It was because of this conviction that the perfectly honest and kind Hinata Hyuuga was tailing her rival. Luckily, this wasn't hard to do in a building like Hogwarts. Firstly, the victim wouldn't even be expecting someone to follow him and there was constantly a thick shield of other people around her to shield her constant presence.

Although it was always better to play it safe. The young kunoichi made sure to quiet her breathing, and not scuff her feet because even being discovered by a victim as non-aggressive as Cedric could spell disaster. If the students of Hogwarts were to ever start taking extra notice of her, the mission could be a complete disaster! So she would play it safe, not get caught, and still find out the clue.

She had been following the boy for about 15 minutes and it looked like he still hadn't noticed he was being watched. Cedric was on his way to meet up with some friends, or at least that's what he had said earlier. So far it seemed he was being true to his word as he headed towards the main courtyard of the castle. The boy turned left into another hallway which didn't seem to have a lot of people in it for once. But upon closer inspection Hinata knew why; her friends, Shino and Kiba were leaning against the wall at the very end of the hallway. The students of Hogwarts became scared of Kiba and Shino after they met their pets. It seemed that they weren't very fond of monstrously over-sized dogs, or swarms of insects. The girl's friends immediately took notice of her. A normal person wouldn't have seen the way that their bodies slightly stiffen and their eyes bulged. They knew when Hinata was tailing someone, in fact they had helped her tail many people before. She knew that her friends wouldn't do anything to stop her. Or at least that's what she thought until she reached the end of the hallway.

Suddenly she felt a strong hand grab her elbow and she was tugged away silently and effectively into a silent hallway away from Cedric.

"K-kiba-kun, Shino-kun, Cedric figured out the egg clue! I n-need to find out what it says." Hinata explained sternly. The kunoichi had honestly no idea why her two friends were stopping her.

"We know" Shino stated shortly.

"W-what?" The girl questioned.

"You're not the only one who's been doing some detective work." Kiba smirked proudly. "We've been tailing him for a day or so."

"He took the egg into the baths. We think that maybe if you put the egg underwater it'll tell you the real clue." Shino reported quietly.

"G-guys! It's one thing I-if I tail him, but you guys helping me is too much! T-this is my mission!" Hinata huffed stubbornly.

"Hinata…." Kiba started, putting a hand on her shoulder, forcing eye contact with the shorter girl. "Remember being a ninja isn't about playing fair, you have to gather information even if you have to cheat to get it." Kiba said paraphrasing their chunnin examiner. That was certainly a test neither of the youths would ever forget.

"I-I guess you're right." Hinata submitted.

"Good, because we weren't the only ones." Kiba laughed nervously.

"W-what do you mean?" She asked skeptically. As if summoned by the comment, the entire company of Konaha ninja appeared from the shadows.

"E-everyone?" Hinata asked, overwhelmed.

"Haha- yup." Ten-ten replied, rubbing the back of her neck.

"Anything to report, guys?" Kiba asked the group.

"It doesn't seem as if the other two have it figured out yet, but we saw Diggory pull over Potter and tell him about the egg. Apparently, Potter told him about the dragons so Diggory's paying him back." Neji reported dutifully.

"Turns out Potter really is a good kid. He's coming to tell you about the egg." Ino continued. "Act surprised." She winked.

"Wow, he must really like you Hinata-chan!" Naruto commented, _completely_ oblivious to the air his comment knocked out of the recipient. "I think you two are cute together." He nodded approvingly. How come Naruto seemed to see Hinata in a romantic relationship with anyone but _himself;_ the only person who she had ever truly loved. The faces of the ninja around her grew stiff. Some of the girls shot her looks of sympathy, while the guys' fists clenched. Overtime his peers had grow quite the respect for Naruto but right now all that could be felt was irritation.

"N-no, it's really not like that!" Hinata countered trying desperately to bring Naruto's thoughts back to the right track.

"Haha, no need to be shy. Just invite me to your wedding!" Naruto teased as he ruffled her long, midnight coloured hair. "Alright everyone, let's leave Hinata alone so that when _lover boy_ comes they can talk _alone._" He chuckled as the group reluctantly followed the energetic blonde. Hinata sighed in defeat as the group made their way from her. Her feelings washed away, leaving a pit in her stomach and a hole in her heart. Would Naruto ever realize how she felt?

"Something's troubling you." A soft voice commented, snapping her out of reality.

"Shino-kun? I-I thought you went with the others." Hinata said. She honestly hadn't noticed that Shino had stayed behind.

"I did at first, but I came back." The boy explained simply.

"O-oh." Hinata replied, slightly flattered.

"Naruto doesn't know what he's missing. He'd be lucky to have you." Shino stated as he readjusted his dark circular frames. When he was saying this comment he never once met the recipient in the eyes and he talked as if this information was common fact, not opinion. The girl knew her bug-loving, four-eyed friend wasn't very good at expressing emotion like this so his weird delivery of the compliment didn't bother her.

"H-he really doesn't care for me as anything more than a f-friend." Hinata realized lamely, her voice ringing hollow.

"No, he doesn't." Shino agreed bluntly with a sigh. Shino was never the person to lie to a friend when they needed to hear the truth, no matter how much the truth hurt. His companion remained silent and her sight suddenly shifted to the floor. With a deep breath Shino attempted to start the conversation again. "Your friend Viktor is still ignoring you isn't he?"

"Y-yes, why would you mention him?" Hinata asked.

"At the ball I saw him watching you when you were talking with Naruto. He looked concerned." He explained. She had no idea that Viktor had seen that, maybe that's why he looked so hurt after the ball. They were allies, friends even and Hinata had depended on another person when it came to her troubles. Was that why he felt she didn't trust him?

"I think I'm going to tell Viktor about the egg." Hinata resolved.

"You do that." Shino said as he walked away. Little did Hinata know that his lips curved up slightly into a smile as he left her, and that he saw a glimmer of hope for her. Only if she learned to let go was she ever going to open herself to new possibilities.

Just as reported, Harry did come to tell Hinata about the golden egg. Years of experience kept Hinata voice kind and steady as she pretended to surprised about the clue. Although a pit formed in the young woman's stomach as the boy waved and left her. He was so kind and honest with her yet she was keeping the biggest secret in world from him. It didn't feel right. Still she waved and smiled as the Boy-Who-Lived walked away.

Fortunately, the room Hinata had been given also had a private bath so she could listen to the clue in privacy. As she slipped into the tub she braced herself for what could be ahead. Carefully she dunked the golden egg under the water and twisted the top so the petals enclosing the egg would ease open revealing its interior. Prepared for the worse, Hinata took one last gulp of fresh air before she followed the egg in its plunge.

Reluctantly, the girl opened her eyes, exposing them to the soapy water. Even with Hinata's eyes stinging from the soap she could see the egg radiating light that seeped through her fingers. But was even more surprising was the harmonizing voices that sounded from the egg. They sounded strangely female, but yet they didn't sound human.

_Come seek us where our voices sound,_

_We cannot sing above the ground,_

_And while you're searching ponder this:_

_We've taken what you'll sorely miss,_

_An hour long you'll have to look,_

_And to recover what we took,_

_But past an hour – the prospect's black_

_Too late, it's gone, it won't come back._

After a couple more run-throughs of the riddle Hinata was ready to start encoding its message. If they wanted her to find them where they're voices sounded, she must have to go underwater. If they couldn't sing above the ground that's why the song sounded like screeching before. But who or what was they? They couldn't be normal humans, they're voices sounded so strange. It must be some kind of magical creature. Yet if that was the case Hinata was sure at a loss because she had no knowledge of magical creatures.

Whatever they were they were going to try to take something, something very important to her. What object would she sorely miss? She didn't think she had anything that important. According to the riddle she would have an hour to look, or whatever they did take would be lost. Was the next task to find something of theirs underwater before an hour passed? If these creatures lived underwater how could they possibly steal something from above the water?

It was no use, Hinata had no idea what type of creatures existed in the wizarding world. Could she really fight something when she had no idea what it was? But on the other hand, maybe Viktor would know, if he even talked to her that is.

The echo of her feet sounded throughout the hallway as she hastily made her way to the library. Hinata knew that Viktor often visited the library to get some peace and quiet. Perhaps that was where he had also met Hermione. But right now she just hoped that he was there now.

To her delight, when she opened the large wooden doors to the library she spotted Viktor seated at a table, looking deep in thought. The young man didn't seem to notice her approach, or if he did he didn't make a move to stop her. Hinata decided to risk tapping his shoulder.

"V-viktor?" She started. He jumped a little before facing her, his eyes finally focusing back in reality. His shocked eyes slowly hardened as he realized who had approached him.

"Vhat?" He demanded harshly.

"I t-think that I can h-help you out." Hinata started, attempting to catch his interest.

"Oh really now?" He questioned as he got up out of his seat and started to walk towards the exit. His strides were long and forceful and even Hinata had a hard time keeping up. "Vhy should I trust you vhen you have no trust in me?"

Hinata had to tell Viktor about the clue. She didn't mean for him to feel hurt, she had to do something to make it up to him.

"J-just put the egg underwater, O-ok?" She managed to blurt out. The boy stopped mid-stride as his body stiffened. He looked back to Hinata and finally made direct eye contact with her for the first time since the Yule Ball.

"Thank you." Viktor said quietly. Slowly the Bulgarian champion turned to face the exit once more and started to walk away. His strides were shorter and slower, he was walking at normal pace again. Just like the night of the Yule Ball, Hinata was forced to stare at his broad back as he strided away, but this time she didn't quite feel as distant from him as before.

END OF CHAPTER! LOOK FORWARD TO THE NEXT CHAPTER, THE SECOND TASK!


	10. The Second Task

Speech Impediments Chapter 9 – The Second Task

Author's note: Alright guys, sorry this chapter came in a little late. With school starting back up again my chapters might come out a little later than usually, but I'm hoping that I can still get a chapter out every 2 to 3 weeks. As always, thanks so much for reading and I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! It's going to be a big one!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot of this story and the strange notion that Viktor Krum and Hinata Hyugga make a good couple. I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter!

3rd Person P.O.V

The strong, cool wind relentlessly slashed again the bare legs of the Tri-wizard champions. They shivered as they stood on a platform in the middle of the Black Lake waiting for their audience to arrive. Many of the champions had made the mistake of dipping their toes in the lake earlier that day. What they felt was the bone-chilling water that would later be their arena. Now, they were forced to stare into its murky depths as they waited for Ludo Bagman to announce the start of the second task.

If only to escape the inevitable for a few moments, Hinata adverted her gaze from the dark, watery depths to the champions surrounding her. She was in the middle with Harry and Cedric on her right and Viktor and Fleur on her left. All four of the youths squinted their eyes and attempted to find the lake's floor; to find what had been taken from them. But it was no use; the water was simply to dark and too unclear to see the bottom.

With a sigh of defeat, Harry straightened and caught Hinata's glance. With a nervous smile at the older girl, Harry looked back to the water and changed his approach by crouching, trying to get the closest look possible to the water.

Hinata never liked going in on a mission blind. But on the other hand she always had Kiba and Shino with her. She knew that they would be there watching, and now she also knew that she had another team to support her; the friends she had made at Hogwarts. Hinata knew that Harry was there for her as he was always helping and supporting her. After his outburst at the Yule Ball, The girl knew Viktor wanted to be there for her as well. Maybe if she just let him Viktor would support her too.

She looked over the brawny Bulgarian and as if feeling her gaze on him, he looked back. Trying the copy Harry's actions earlier, the kunoichi flashed what she hoped to be a reassuring smile at her companion. For just a moment the young man flinched and his breath caught in his throat, before he attempted to return the girl's sentiment. Now that he thought of it, this was the first time he had smiled at her.

"Attention, ladies and gentleman." Bagman's voice boomed over the loud speaker. "It's time for the second task to start! Our champions will have exactly one hour to look for what has been taken from them." He explained to the crowd.

What exactly had been taken from them? None of the participants had noticed anything missing from their lives. If they didn't know it was gone, how could it possibly be important to them?

"On my mark champions, you will be free to start your search. On your marks….. get set…..GO!" Bagman announced excitingly, as a whistle was sounded. Simultaneously, all five youths dived into the water, amercing themselves fully to the water's icy clutches. The cold penetrated through the skin and restricted the competitors' movements. Hinata Hyuuga was the first to act, creating a large air bubble around her which both shielded her from the cold and provided a way to breathe. The other champions were also quick to activate their plans, except one didn't seem to go as smoothly.

A gurgling noise sounded from near the surface, which caused Hinata to turn and discover its source. Harry Potter was clutching at his throat, as his screams were muffled by the water. Was he drowning? With powerful kicks Hinata propelled herself towards the younger boy, but suddenly his skin started to tinge green and the boy's toes and fingers were being webbed together. Finally, when he lifted his hands from his neck the girl could see slits pulsing up and down; they were gills. Harry Potter had managed to turn himself into a human fish! Hinata still pursued the boy to make sure he was OK, only to be waved off. It seemed that Harry was coping well with his transformation.

With the knowledge that her friend was going to be OK, Hinata continued on her pursuit for her missing possession. In the distance she could see her competition swimming with purpose to the lake's floor. She could faintly make out the figures of Cedric and Fleur in the distance. They had covered their heads with a bubble similar to one she had made that allowed them to breathe. Further along, there was Viktor who had appeared to roughly transform his head into that of a shark's; The proportions of his new head to his body providing a comical contrast.

Hinata began to make her way to the lake's floor as she noticed the stones that provided the surface with an almost glittering tile. Long, winding pieces of seaweed gave the underwater arena extra obstacles she would have to weave through. The terrain was most certainly more difficult than that of the first task.

The girl had no idea where she was supposed to go. The water wasn't clear enough to see very far ahead of her; so the only thing she could was go straight and hope for the best. As she swam, Hinata swore she could hear something. Further on her journey the sound became more distinct as she recognized a faint melody; the song from the golden egg.

With new found vigor the shinobi stroked closer and closer to the sound until she could see something in the distance. On the lake's floor stood a village of sorts made of primitive stone buildings gathered in clusters. This village also appeared to be the source of the song.

As the distance to the village grew shorter, Hinata began to wonder of the village's occupants. Were they the ones who sang the golden egg's clue? The area seemed to be completely deserted, not even the other champions were there yet.

Only when the girl reached one of the 'streets' of the village, did she see the village's locals. A head peeked out of one of the house's doors and met her gaze with curious yellow eyes. Suddenly upon her arrival the village sprang to life. Soon the village's streets and houses were full of occupants. Hinata knew that these creatures wouldn't possible be human as soon as she had heard their voices chiming from the egg. What she hadn't known was how spectacular they would be. Several sets of piercing yellow eyes sent mixed signals of curiosity and intimidation, while their silvery fish tails seemed to dance back and forth keeping them from grazing the rocky floor. The fish people seemed to box the girl in as she continued on her quest to find her missing treasure.

The rough narrow streets of the village suddenly seemed to converge into a central area. In the center, a statue of one of the creatures was erected. But what marveled Hinata the most was not the statue itself but what was attached to it. Tied by the feet to the statue were the limp bodies of Ron Weasley, Naruto Uzumaki and a little blonde girl Hinata didn't recognize. A rush of digust trickled down Hinata's spine as she took in the pale complexion and almost lifelessness of the bodies before her. The girl had been entirely convinced that what had been taken from her was an object, not an actual living human being. Were they still breathing? The wizards couldn't possible drown a handful of teenagers for sport, could they?

Hinata made a silent prayer as she felt Naruto's neck for a pulse. A reassuring beat vibrated from the skin, but how could they possibly be alive right now when they had probably gone without oxygen for hours? In the background Hinata could still hear the creature's song. It was a constant reminder of what had to be done, but now that she had found her missing treasure the hidden darker meaning of the song came forth.

_But past an hour – the prospect's black_

_Too late, it's gone, it won't come back._

What did the song mean by gone? If Hinata didn't bring Naruto to the surface in time; would he….? The girl burrowed this thought into the deepest corner of her mind. If the wizards had kept them alive during the task surely they wouldn't be so heartless as to kill the loved ones of the champions who failed. They wouldn't possibly get away with that.

Although these reassuring thoughts constantly formed in her mind, the young kunoichi couldn't stop her mad panic as she hastily cut the weed that tethered Naruto to the statue, and awkwardly kicked her way to the surface.

In the distance, Hinata could see the light that the surface promised. At the sea floor it was ominously dark and as the remaining hostages floated in the creature's village, Hinata couldn't help but be reminded of a grave yard. She had to escape the darkness and bring Naruto into the light. This thought became her driving force as she finished her journey to the surface and the bubble around her popped.

As if summoned by the wind, Naruto instantly woke up, taking a generous gulp of the fresh air. The colour instantly returned to his pale skin and with a burst of adrenaline he started to aid Hinata in their pursuit to the dock. When the pair finally their destination Hinata realized that it wasn't adrenaline that was powering the young man's movements, but rage. Hosting himself up with both hands, Naruto gracefully lifted himself onto the dock and strutted towards the headmaster of Hogwarts, refusing both to talk to Hinata and a towel that offered welcoming warmth.

"What's the big idea, old man?" He yelled.

"What do you mean?" The wizard asked calmly.

"When you asked us to stay longer so we could 'help with the second task'," Naruto paraphrased with the use of heavily exaggerated air quotes. "Was that code for 'hey why don't you stay a little long so that I can _drown_ you'?!" He exclaimed.

"I assure you that you were completely safe when you were under the water and if you hadn't noticed, Miss Hyuuga saved you and you are completely back to normal." The wise old man explained.

"Yah, for now." Naruto snarled. "If you were only going to drown me why didn't you let my friends go home, huh? Why keep all of us?"

"You of all people should know that keeping only one of you would have been too suspicious." Dumbledore replied with a secretive smile.

"Sly old man!" Naruto said as he lunged for his elder. Before he could get too far Hinata was able to grab one of his arms and pull him back.

"N-naruto-kun. Y-you're fine now, calm down ok?" The girl said soothingly.

"Why should I?" Naruto asked, enraged. Her concern went right over his head, her words obviously ringing hollow. Even though he had replied, Hinata knew that he was too angry to take her seriously. If her concern couldn't reach him, then her logic would.

_"Naruto, calm know why you can't cause a scene." _Hinata ordered firmly, her grip tightening on his arm. Not a single stutter hindered her voice. It was rare that Hinata was ever able to use this tone of voice with anyone, a tone that commanded rather than followed. She had certainly never been able to use it with Naruto. But they couldn't risk getting on anyone's bad side. The ninjas needed the wizards' continued friendship in order for _it_ to work and she would do anything for that to happen.

Reluctantly, the boy backed down and grabbed a towel. With a stiff nod he sat on the edge of the dock as a group of witches flocked to them attending to his every need. After his outburst, Naruto looked drained as he stared off into space. Most people would mistake this as submission but Hinata knew better, Naruto was certainly still angry at Dumbledore; he just had to hold it in. With a large sigh Naruto turned his head to face Hinata slightly.

"Thanks for saving me," he mumbled. Not bothering to wait for a reply Naruto turned back to face the lake his eyes still holding the flames of his anger.

Now that the atmosphere had calmed down a bit, Hinata was finally able to take in her surroundings. There were 10 minutes left in the challenge and four champions, including herself were on the dock. Cedric and a girl Hinata didn't recognize stood side by side as Cedric tried to calm the girl down. Beside them stood Viktor and Hermione, and Fleur who seemed to be standing alone, her face as pale as a sheet as she paced back and forth. It would seem that all the champions stood with the person they rescued yet why did Fleur stand alone? Was Harry still in the Black Lake searching for his missing person? If he was he better hurry she thought. Only 5 minutes remained in their allotted hour now. Fleur broke the eerie silence.

"Madame Maxime you have to let me go back in. Gabriella, Gabriella is still in there!" She protested as she strided towards the water. Thankfully Fleur was no match for the Madame's superior size or strength.

"You have to stay here. Your sister is fine." The larger woman assured. The words did little to ease the tension on Beauxbaton's champion's face and even less to ease the tension pooling in the air.

It wasn't long until the allowed time for the task was over. The crowd seemed on edge, many of the stand's occupants leaned over in their seats, attempting to get a better look into the lake. What would happen if the boy stayed in the water too long? Wasn't there a punishment for not making it back in time?

The minutes ticked by until the task was running well over the time limit. The water was calm, almost too calm. The only sound that could be heard was the quiet lapping of the waves against the docks and the excited whispering of the crowd. But suddenly the surface of the water rippled and a collective silence spread throughout the crowd. The rippling grew larger and more violent with each passing second, something must have been happening below the surface. The rippling grew into splashing and blurry figures became visible. Harry was struggling to tow both Ron and the little blonde girl, but this was the least of his problems. As the young hero kicked desperately to the surface he was constantly being bombarded by a swarm of squid-like creatures. They were different then the fish-people Hinata had seen in the village. They were smaller, fiercer, and obviously liked to travel in packs. There was no way Harry would possible force his way through the horde of monsters.

Instinctively, Hinata shrugged the towel that had been draped around her off and went to dive into the water. But before she could jump in she felt a cold, hard grip on her leg. She looked down to find the sitting figure of Naruto stopping her. The anger in his stare had lessened slightly but it had been replaced with something else; something the girl couldn't quite put her finger on.

"You have to take your own advice Hinata." Naruto stated evenly.

"W-what? But it's my job to p-protect him. T-that's what I'm here for!" Hinata retaliated.

"If he can't do this, then he'll never be able to fight him." Naruto reminded her. Sadly, Hinata couldn't agrue with this point of view. Harry had to take care of himself, Hinata was only there if the worst should happen. Slowly, the young girl sat down beside her companion and waited, praying that the Boy-Who-Lived would once again overcome the trail set out for him.

The prospects looked pretty grim as the two bodies the boy was trying to support weighed him down like rocks. Desperately the boy reached into his uniform and pulled out his wand. He pointed his weapon towards the creatures as he yelled his command. Although the spell was muffled by the water and came out only as bubbles, a flash of light lit up the dark waters. The boy and the two victims shot up to the surface and together all three of them gasped in the fresh air. Although Harry was the last to rescue his hostage, he received the loudest round of applause. Hinata let out a breath didn't know she was holding, Harry was being rewarded for his bravery and selfness, just as he should be. He had made sure that everyone was safe, even when it wasn't required of him to do so; something that had not even crossed Hinata's mind when she had been down there. With a small smile, Hinata couldn't help thinking to herself that maybe Harry would be alright after all.

The lush grass of the Hogwarts grounds crunched under Hinata's feet as she paced through the fields. Normally the cold evening air would put her mind at ease, but tonight the young woman had too much to think about. With the second task finally over, Hinata no longer had any distractions from the emotions that were currently tearing at her heart, finally everything was settling in. All that time hoping Naruto would finally notice her, hoping that someday they could be together was a waste. She had finally realized this when he had supported her so-called relationship with Harry. But his lack of acknowledgement during the second task set this thought in stone. Hinata was sure that if Sakura had been there instead of her the outcome would have been different. Hinata was sure she wanted to cry at that moment, yet no tears fell. All she felt was the icy hollowness of her spirit and the desire to feel warm once again.

Hinata knew that her current coldness wasn't from the weather outside but she knew it was getting late and that she should be getting back to the castle. Glad that the trip would serve as a distraction from her current mood she allowed her eyes to be drawn to the sparkling water surrounding Hogwarts and the majestic ship that laid anchor in them. It was the largest ship she had ever seen, with intricate engravings and towering white sails. The ship looked old in design but showed no sign of actual aging or weathering; maybe magic had something to do with that as well?

Despite the late hour several lights appeared to be on in the ship. Hinata didn't seem to be the only night owl still awake. Her fine-tuned hearing easily picked up on the crunching of grass behind her. It seemed that she also wasn't the only one who fancied the late night air. Although she could tell that this person's pace was faster than her's. She smiled although it was strained; somehow knowing she wasn't the only one out there, made her feel less alone. In fact, it was rather strange, somehow the heavy sounding strides and the deep pants behind her sounded familiar. These familiar sounds were also heading straight for her.

Instinctively, Hinata spun on her heel to face her pursuer. What she was met with was the panting figure of Viktor Krum. He must have been running after her.

"Um… do you have a moment to talk?" He asked politely, his speech only slightly hindered by the panting. "Sorry it's so late, I just saw you pass by."

"I-it's alright, I wasn't going to b-bed for awhile anyways." Hinata answered honestly. She was glad her friend was talking to her again. They hadn't really talked since she had told Viktor about the egg clue.

"Good." He stated shortly, his breathe returning to normal. Together the pair slowly made their way to the castle, not particularly caring about their destination anymore.

"Are your friends going back home soon?" Viktor asked trying to start the conversation.

"Y-yes. After Dumbledore put him in the Black Lake, N-naruto wants to go back to the village as soon as possible." Hinata explained, remembering the hothead's outburst.

"I see. You're going to miss them aren't you? Especially Naruto…." He trailed off on a bitter tone.

Hinata honestly wasn't ready to answer this question. She knew that she was going to miss her friends, but right now she just wanted Naruto to go far away where she would never have to see him again.

"I-I don't know about that anymore…" She replied, the truth spilling out before she could hold it back.

"Vhy? Did something happen?" Viktor asked, his pitch raising an octave.

"No, it's not like h-he did anything. It's just I finally realized what I had been doing. I had been in l-love with someone who d-didn't care about me for too long and… I…." She explained her voice filling with the emotion she had been so desperately holding in. Admitting something aloud was certainly harder than admitting it to yourself in your head. Her vision was blurred with tears that she desperately held back. Through the clear drops Hinata could see the concern etched into Viktor's face; concern that had not once graced the features of Naruto's.

The Bulgarian opened his mouth as if to say something, but quickly closed it and took a deep breath. As if he finally came to a decision with himself he gently pulled Hinata's hands into his and looked her square in the eye.

"Hinata Hyuuga,_ I_ care about you." He announced, not once breaking his determined gaze. The young woman's breath caught in her throat and for a second she felt like she was going to faint.

"Viktor- I…." She started.

"I know you're confused right now. You loved Naruto for so long. But please just give me a chance. I promise I vill never, _never_ make you feel like this. You'll never have to feel like this ever again. Hinata please…" He pleaded.

"I-I just can't give you an h-honest answer right now. It's not fair to you if I can't your honest confession an honest response. " Hinata replied, managing to untangled her jumbled thoughts. Slowly she pulled away her hands and took a deep breath. "I-I just need some time." She requested honestly. Viktor deserved better than what she could give him right now, she needed to give her honest response, but right now she wasn't sure what that was.

"I understand." Viktor said sadly. "I just have one request. Before the third task, will you go on a date with me?"

Suddenly it all seemed like too much for Hinata, she shouldn't even be considering this boy. Not when she was lying to him, to everyone here. No one knew what she really was; she wasn't a wizard like them. She started caring too much about them, getting too attached.

"Hinata, please just give me a chance." The young man pleaded. Seeing his face, Hinata knew that even though she shouldn't, that she probably couldn't; she wanted to give him the chance he so desperately craved. She honestly wanted to, and for once she was going to push away her duty and do what she wanted.

"O-ok, before the third task." She confirmed. The slow, genuine smile that followed her response somehow made everything better. It made her feel that she had made the right choice. Whether or not that intuition was correct was something she would just have to discover for herself.

END OF CHAPTER!


	11. Back To Black

Speech Impediments Chapter 10 – Back to Black

Author's note: Hey guys! I figure I should give you a little heads-up, unfortunately this story is nearing its end. I plan to have 3 more chapters including this one and the plot will finish at the end of Book 4's plot. Thanks so much for reading this story this far and hopefully you'll check out my future work as well. Thanks again and enjoy the chapter! Reviews are always appreciated :D

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot of this story and the strange notion that Viktor Krum and Hinata Hyugga make a good couple. I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter!

3rd Person P.O.V

Hinata Hyuuga had no idea why she enjoyed the night so much. The crisp breeze and darkness would make any normal person unease yet somehow, being so accustomed to this type of environment, the kunoichi felt safest at night where the shadows would hide her and, if she wanted, no one could find her. She could always use the shield of the shadows to aid her it was simply her element. She could hear her thoughts clearly and if she let it, the darkness could surround her and take all her cares away. But on nights like tonight even the magical night couldn't take away her thoughts.

The third task seemed to be approaching even faster than the task before. It had already been quite a while since Hinata had to dive headfirst into the Black Lake to save Naruto. A couple of days after that the ninjas had gone back Konaha leaving Hinata to be the sole ninja left at Hogwarts. She was the only ninja assigned to a castle full of people, plus their guests. Any of these people could have put Harry's name in the Goblet of Fire, and any of these people could be the one to bring the devastation that had been foreseen for the near future. Something was going to happen the question was; when it would start and who would cause it. Someone had put Harry's name in the Goblet of Fire and that person had still not been caught. There were too many suspects too pin-point who it could have been, and so far that person hadn't made a move. But Hinata felt that would soon change. Whoever it was was running out of time.

Although she had all of these lose ends too worry about Hinata also couldn't help but have a nagging thought in the back of her mind. She was also running out of time. Before the third task she was going to have to go on a date with Viktor Krum. She had honestly wanted to go when she had answered him but now her senses were returning to her and she understood what a mess she had created. Even if Hinata did go on a date with Viktor and they had a good time he would soon find out what she was and what she had done and it would all come crumbling apart. What was she going to do?

The proceeding morning, Hinata awoke later than usual for a Saturday morning. The sun pierced through the curtains, blurring her vision. She could also faintly feel the headache she must she earned from staying up too late the previous night. She was positive all the other students had already eaten breakfast and been on their merry way but The Great Hall would still be open for the few stragglers who took a liking to sleeping in on the weekends. Hinata knew there were those who were far worse than she but she couldn't help but be disappointed in herself for letting herself sleep in. Last night she had made a decision. She had to focus on the mission first and foremost. She wasn't going to think about Viktor all day that day. She had too much else to worry about, she couldn't let herself get distracted

Reluctantly, the kunoichi gracefully rolled out of bed, leaving the warm embrace of her blankets to expose herself to the cold air and stone of the castle floors. Hinata recovered quickly from her groggy state and got ready for the day. Today she took extra caution not to wear anything too flashy as she now might have to tail people at a moment's notice. Today was the day the ninja would finally start to take her mission seriously. She couldn't afford to let anything slip her senses now. Dumbledore was sure that the dark wizards would attempt something horrible during this year and the third task of the Tri-wizard tournament would be their ultimate chance. If Hinata was decisive and attentive she could possibly stop this from happening, at least that was what Dumbledore had hoped.

Finally Hinata was ready to start the day and with a bounding start down the moving staircase, Hinata Hyuuga began her search for Harry Potter. Harry was the target after all, so it would be best to ask him if anything unusual had been happening around him lately. Harry trusted her now so perhaps he might even tell her who he thought put his name in the Goblet of Fire?

Hinata's search appeared to be futile until she found Harry clustered together with his two best friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, at a table in the Great Hall. Their heads were huddled together and they conversed through hushed whispers. Upon further inspection, Hinata could see Harry's eyes darting back and forth as if to see if there were any curious ears listening in on their conversation. With a nonchalant gaze Hinata walked by Harry and towards the end of the long wooden table to grab some food. She didn't dare slow her walk or let the curiosity show on her face but her well-trained ears picked up on Hermione's directive tone.

"Look, either way we have to get going. He said he'd meet us in Hogsmeade at 2 o'clock. If we don't leave now we'll be late." Hermione reminded her two male companions. After all she was always the one to be punctual.

"Alright. Ron, you grab the food." Harry sighed as he stood up from bench.

Who would they possibly be meeting that would cause them to look so worried? Hinata didn't remember there being a scheduled trip to Hogsmeade this weekend either. Going out without anyone knowing was too risky, Harry really should know better. Quickening her pace to the assortment of breakfast foods Hinata decided that she should make sure Harry and his friends were going to be OK. Carelessly Hinata grabbed a muffin and a banana for the road and made her way back out into the halls of Hogwarts. Harry, Hermione and Ron were already heading out the front door, large black cloaks hiding their forms. They certainly didn't waste any time. But neither would Hinata.

The air wasn't as crisp has it had been lately. By the time Hinata had tailed the trio all the way to Hogsmeade all three of them had taken off their now useless cloaks and Hinata regretted wearing such a warm sweater. Finally they were milling through the lively streets of Hogsmeade. Hinata had personally never had the time to come to the village but had heard many pleasant stories about the place and was quite glad she was finally getting to visit despite the rather strange circumstances.

The trio continued through the streets of Hogsmeade expertly weaving through crowds of people and easily navigating the twists and turns. At the speed they were going it didn't seem like they would ever stop. But to Hinata's surprised they did in fact stop and go into a store. They couldn't just be shopping around the way they were acting could they? Could this whole expedition just have been a result of paranoia?

Hinata waited outside for the group while trying to catch a glimpse of the inside. They appeared to just be browsing through the stores wares. In fact they looked like they were having quite a good time. Something wasn't right here, Hinata was sure of it. Harry looked too worried in the Great Hall for there not to be something wrong. They had even snuck out of the castle without telling anyone they were going as far as she knew.

About 15 minutes later, Harry went to the cashier holding several odd and rather colourful pairs of socks. Hinata mentally slapped herself. If she had been so worried about Harry to actually follow him for a day over a couple of weird pairs of socks she wouldn't even let herself live it down. But as soon as Harry had finished purchasing the socks, he exited the shop briskly with Hermione and Ron in tow. Hinata expected them to turn back down the street they had walked before but strangely the youths turned in the opposite direction and started to head towards the end of the street that would take them straight away from Hogwarts into the countryside. Questions buzzing around in her mind, Hinata started to make her way through the crowds, making sure she never lost sight of the group. Thankfully, it was rather easy to keep track of them because of Ron's bright hair.

Towards the edge of town the crowds started to thin out and slowly the cottages and shops became less frequent. Soon they were free of the village and into the countryside where the houses were fewer and the space was more open. Hinata adjusted her speed accordingly and tried her best to hide behind the few buildings and keep herself out of sight. Now that there were less people Hinata had to take extra precaution. In the distance at the end of the winding path was a mountain that created the shadow in which Hogsmeade resided. The adolescents continued on their journey and headed towards the mountain. Hinata continued to hide as she followed the group using houses, trees and gardens for cover. Soon the group was nearing the end of the path and something started to come into sight near the foot of the mountain. Slowly a black smug cleared into large black dog that carried several news papers in its mouth. Hinata was now watching the group from a nearby tree and could see the dog quite well. As soon as Harry, Ron and Hermione reached the dog they smiled.

"Hello Sirius." Harry greeted as the dog eagerly sniffed the bag Harry had brought on his dog seemingly content with the bag's contents wagged its tail and turned towards the mountain. Then the dog started into a face-pace trot to the mountain. As if following a tour guide the three young adults started their pursuit of the dog as they slowly trudged up the mountain. The pace seemed to be punishing as the teens failed to keep up with the brisk pace but Hinata had no trouble getting up the mountain, in fact she was quite grateful for the shelter the surroundings rocks provided. Finally, their hike came to an abrupt end when the dog led the trio into a dimly lit cave.

There was no way Hinata could sneak into the cave and not be noticed so she lingered at the cave's mouth and took refuge behind a boulder beside the entrance. Fortunately she could clearly hear everything going on in the cave. Including the voice that she heard that was not Harry's, Ron's or Hermione's. It was a deep voice that held age and experience, probably that of a middle aged man. His words echoed throughout the cave giving them more definition then they actually possessed. Who was this man? Why had Harry come to see him? Was this man the dog's master?

"What are you doing Sirius? If anyone sees you…!" Harry exclaimed

"Look Harry I'm your _godfather_, I have to be here for you. From what I've been hearing things are heating up around here. I'm worried about you kids." The man named Sirius explained, his voice was occasionally cut off by chewing. Hinata assumed the food the group had brought with them had been for this man; the man who called himself Harry's godfather. Hinata knew Harry's parents had been tragically murdered by the Dark Lord many years earlier but she had never been given word of a godfather.

"But what if you get caught?" Harry insisted, his voice thick with worry. This man must be special to Harry if he cared so much about him. But why did they have to be kept apart? Why could they not be caught?

"Harry, only you three and Dumbledore know I'm an Animagus." Sirius reminded his godson trying to get him to finally calm down. Hinata remembered faintly being briefed on different types of wizards and she recalled that Animagus were people who could basically shift-shape from an animal into a human. Sirius was not the dog's master but in fact, the dog himself! Hinata smiled to herself lightly; little did her victims know that now one more person knew his little secret.

Harry let out a little sigh of defeat and finally the conversation began to brew in the cave. Many names were being mentioned some of which she knew, some she didn't and some she had only heard of but she could tell that what they were talking about could possibly be her key to figuring out who she had to keep her eye on. Most of the conversation was centered around one man Barty Crouch. Hinata had been made familiar with several important wizards before she arrived at Hogwarts and thankfully Mr. Crouch was one of them.

Apparently, had been in line to become the next Minister for Magic after the fall of the Dark Lord but then his own son had been caught as a Death Eater and sent to prison. He later went mad and died in prison so Hinata dismissed Mr. Crouch's son from her list. If he was dead he couldn't possibly be causing any problems now. But the conversation didn't stop there and Mr. Crouch's name wasn't the only name Hinata recognized.

"Karkaroff came into Potions class the other day." Harry reported. "He wanted to talk to Snape but he tried to send him off 'till the end of class. He looked really freaked out and he showed him something on his arm."

Hinata Hyuuga had been given specific orders not to harm Severus Snape. Mr. Moody, the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher had been keeping a pretty close eye on him to even the point of trying to break into his office. But Moody never seemed to have found anything on him, or at least not that he had shared. Mr. Dumbledore obviously trusted Mr. Snape tremendously and frankly Hinata wasn't worried about him, it was Karkaroff she had issues with; that 'something on his arm' it had to be a Dark Mark! Well that was one person to add to her list of suspects. _

The crickets sounded around the Tri-Wizards champions as they marched through the damp, thick grass. Even though it was dark Hinata could see that Viktor had caught a glimpse of her several times throughout the trip as if to gauge her reaction. Honestly, Hinata wanted to smile back and talk to him but she couldn't do that now, not with the dark thoughts that were running through her head. Karkaroff was fairly close to Viktor, she had always know that, he was the one Viktor had first arrived with when he came to Hogwarts. Now she suspected Viktor's mentor of doing terrible things and possible of doing more in the future. She couldn't look him in the eye; it would hurt him so much if Karkaroff did in fact become her target. When Viktor finally gathered the courage to smile at her it took all of her strength to lift the corners of her mouth in response.

Finally they arrived at their destination; the Quidditch pitch; the final stage of the Tri-wizard tournament. Hinata had never seen a Quidditch pitch before, or even vaguely knew what quidditch was so she didn't know what except. Although she knew that Harry and Cedric played quidditch at school and Viktor even played the sport professionally so when they entered the ring she wasn't surprised when their jaws went slack and their eyes bulged.

"Vhat did they do?" Viktor asked, shocked at the site before him. His fellow sportsman shared similar looks of despair at the ruining of their pitch.

Several long, short hedges now stood erected atop the grass of the field, intertwining and crossing each other creating elaborate patterns.

"Hello there!" The energetic voice of Ludo Bagman sounded from in front of the hedges. All the champions gathered around the announcer and waited for his insight.

"Now who can guess what all of this is?" he started

"A maze," Hinata answered.

"Correct, Miss Hyuga. Mind you in a month or so the hedges will all be much taller." Bagman warned. The three boys couldn't help but release slight groans of mourning at their dead pitch; it seemed like a waste that there had been no qudditch at all that year. Once Bagman caught sight of the less-than-enthusiastic faces of the young men he chuckled heartily.

"As for what the third task is, it's really simple. The Tri-wizard cup will be placed in the center of the maze and you'll have to get by the many obstacles we set for you. The first champion to touch the cup receives full marks!" Bagman explained.

"Alright we just 'ave to get through the maze?" Fleur asked her french accent poking through slightly.

"Basically, but there's one catch. The champions will enter at different times, starting with the champions with the most points and then descending to those that have the least. But you'll have a good chance at the cup depending how you fare with the obstacles." Bagman continued. "Any questions?"

When no one answered Ludo Bagman bid the champions good night and returned to the castle. Viktor shot a sideways glance at Hinata and looked hopefully into her eyes. They hadn't really talked much since Viktor had confessed to her; he had been true to his word and given her space but now it seemed he was growing impatient.

"Hinata, do you have a minute?" He asked. This is what Hinata wanted to avoid, when she looked into his eyes all she saw was concern he had for her and she would do anything to keep that there, to stay in that moment forever but she couldn't ignore her duty.

"S-sorry Viktor, I'm not feeling very good right now. I-i think I need to get some sleep. I'll talk to you in the morning, OK?" She bluffed.

"Oh, that's OK; I'll find you in the morning." He promised looking slightly disappointed. She was glad to have bought the extra time but on her way back to the castle all Hinata could think about was what she was going to say to him tomorrow.

When Hinata finally entered the castle the halls were surprisingly empty. They seemed extensively larger when no one was around. This unfortunately was not a blessing in the case of Hinata Hyuuga as she hurried down the halls pressing the tips on her fingers into her temple to fight off an oncoming headache. The sound of her feet hitting the stone thudded hollowly her mind and every step brought a slightly throb of pain. She needed many things at that moment; answers, a break, and certainly a lot of rest. Her sole goal was reaching her room and letting sleep finally take her. But it would appear fate had a different plan for her, as she headed up a flight of stairs. A low muttering came from around a corner up ahead which she simply couldn't ignore.

"Damn Potter…..who does he think he is…Dumbledore….thinks he can outsmart me…..I'll give him a piece of my mind, "mumbled a voice. The accent that plagued his speech was very familiar. Bulgarian for sure, but it was rougher and more choppy than Viktor's, almost as if the voice could never hold any type of kindness; Karkaroff.

"Where could that Potter boy be? He should be back by now" Karkaroff mused darkly. His voice was getting closer; Hinata could now hear everything he said. He was going after Harry, she had to do something, he had a Dark mark, and he could still be a Death eater! Before she could think, her instincts kicked in. She steadied herself by widening her stance and bending her knees. She stilled her breathe and cleared her mind, bracing herself for a strike.

As soon as Karkaroff turned the corner, he was met with quite the unpleasant surprise. With a quick strike to the neck, Karkaroff's body slumped like a ragdoll to the floor and the culprit escaped into the cover of the shadows.

"I'm sorry, Viktor."

END OF CHAPTER!


	12. Secrets

Speech Impediments Chapter 11 – Secrets

Author's note: Hey guys, welcome to the last couple chapters of Speech Impediments. Thanks for reading up to this point and I really hope you'll enjoy the chapter! I have only planned 2 more chapters of this story, so I hope you'll like the ending. Reviews are always appreciated :D

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot of this story and the strange notion that Viktor Krum and Hinata Hyugga make a good couple. I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter!

3rd Person P.O.V

The limp body of Igor Karkaroff now lay sprawled out on the staircase, his bangs covering his loosely closed eyes. He would wake up soon, Hinata had no intention of killing without proper reason but now Karkaroff or any of the other Death Eaters had a warning. Now they would know that someone was on to them and that they simply couldn't do whatever they pleased. The halls that branched off from the staircase remained vacant and the kunoichi's well-trained ears didn't pick up any sounds of movement. Hinata jumped over the body and let her legs absorb the shock and sound when she landed at the top of the steps. As she ran down the hallway she made sure to stay high on her toes as to make the least sound as possible.

Just as Hinata finally felt safe enough to continue walking in a normal fashion and pace, she heard the feverish sound of shoes hitting cobble stones. A cold sweat slowly trickled down her back as slowed her breathing and cast a composed glance. She could now hear two distinct rhythms of feet hitting the floor; one faster than the other. Both sounds were getting louder and that meant the people were getting closer.

"What's happened Harry?" The deep tone of Professor Dumbledore rang.

"Its Mr. Crouch sir he's not acting normally. Krum and I stayed behind after Bagman told us about the third task and we found him. He said he wanted to warn you… he mentioned his son…and.." Harry explained at a feverish pace before his voice was too muffled to hear, they must have turned a corner and moved away from her.

Mr. Crouch's son was a former Death Eater, but had died in prison. Why would Mr. Crouch bring up his son now, especially when he wanted to warn Dumbledore about something? Hinata picked up her pace and followed the sound of the voices until the two wizards were in sight.

"I-is something wrong?" Hinata asked with genuine concern. She certainly knew something was wrong but she needed to know what _exactly_ was wrong.

"Something's up with Mr. Crouch. Viktor and I found him out in the woods. He told me to find Dumbledore for him." Harry explained not once slowing his brisk strides or looking over to Hinata. The older wizard was having some difficulty keeping up with the boy but refused to voice a complaint due to the circumstances.

"Is Viktor out there with him?" Hinata asked suddenly realizing the risk Harry had taken by leaving Viktor with the blubbering politician.

"Yah he's keeping an eye on him while I'm gone." Harry replied also only suddenly realizing the risks of leaving Krum alone with the unstable man. Last time Harry saw Mr. Crouch he was talking to a tree as if it were Percy Weasley. Harry looked over to Hinata and they realized they both shared a similar expression of worry. Despite the best interests of their elderly headmaster the adolescents increasing their speed until their walking could be classified as slow jogging.

Finally they reached the door and stepped out into the frigid night air. The group's pace slowed only slightly as their feet slide on the late night dew of the grass.

"Where were they when you left them, Harry?" Dumbledore asked between huffs and puffs.

"Near the Beauxbaton's carriage." Harry replied pointing towards the forest to the west. When they finally reach the carriage all that could be heard was their own feet crunching against the leaves below and the occasional call of owls.

"Viktor?" Hinata called. There was no response. Not even Hinata could hear any signs of movement.

"I was sure they were here…" Harry trailed off. "They couldn't have moved too far off…" Harry said as he resumed the search.

"_Lumos"_ The Headmaster said as light began to pool out of his outstretched wand creating a thin beam. The beam surveyed the surrounding area, searching from tree to tree but never found Crouch or Viktor until Dumbledore pointed to wand to the ground. There was a pair of feet laid across the ground. As the light moved up the body, it became more familiar to the wizards. Finally when Dumbledore's light illuminated the frozen face of Viktor Krum, Hinata's breathe caught in her throat.

His body was a perfect reflection of his teacher's; both unconscious and sprawled in strange ways as they had no control when they fell. A pit instantly formed in the young ninja's stomach. If Karkaroff was knocked out on the stairs right now, there was no way he could have gone after Viktor or Crouch, she had gotten the wrong person.

"V-viktor." She gasped as her knees fell to the forest floor. She quickly surveyed the body for signs of injury; thankfully nothing seemed to be of immediate importance. She glanced over to see the old wizard gently lifting one of Viktor's eye lids.

"No need to be alarmed Miss Hyuuga, he has only been stunned."

"Professor, I'm afraid there _is_ need to be alarmed." Harry corrected "It doesn't look like Crouch is here anymore."

~Next Scene~

Late that night, which to most people was early in the morning, Professor Dumbledore was still awake, contemplating the events that had just transpired. He ran his wrinkled fingers through his gray hair as he released a breathe he hadn't know he'd been holding.

Two attack in one night. Igor Karkaroff had been discovered in a stairwell unconscious just as his student had been found only about an hour later. It was the common belief that whoever had gotten Karkaroff had also taken out Krum and there was the popular theory that this culprit had been himself who had committed these attacks in hatred of the Bulgarians. The fact that the politician had been away sick recently didn't help his cause and the fact he didn't seem to be stable before he fled made him all the more suspicious. But Dumbledore knew that he could clear Mr. Crouch of at least one of these crimes.

Not that any else had noticed but when he had examined Karkaroff's unconscious body he had noticed a slight bruise forming on his neck. The only person that would resort to physical violence rather than magic was someone who was obvious more accustomed to that set of skills…someone who definitely wasn't Mr. Crouch. A tentative knock at the door shook the wizard from his thoughts.

"Come in." Dumbledore responded. The head of Minerva McGonagall peaked out over the door. Despite the late hour Dumbledore noted that her thin brown hair was still tied into its characteristic tight bun.

"Excuse me Sir." Minerva apologized. "I saw that the light was still on in your office, and I came to see if you needed any assistance." She explained.

"Thanks for your concern, Minerva. I was going to retire shortly after finding Mr. Karkaroff but I seemed to have lost track of time." Dumbledore sighed.

Minerva hesitated for a moment but then stepped into the office. She gazed into the old mage's eyes with new resolve.

"Sir, can I be plain with you?"

"Certainly." Dumbledore replied, rather curious what his peer had to say to him. It was late anyway no one would be awake to hear them.

"The person who attacked Karkaroff wasn't the same person who attack Krum was it?" Minerva stated more than asked. It appeared that Dumbledore wasn't the only one who noticed the bruise.

"No. I assume you saw the bruise?" He asked, quite pleased with the women's sharpness.

"Why didn't you say anything to the others?" Minerva questioned. "The person who attacked Karkaroff is obvious." She scoffed, Minerva had been displeased about this plan for awhile. "Look, I was fine with bringing in extra help. Ms. Hyuuga had not caused any trouble until this day, but she attacked a man who as far as we know hadn't done anything to Harry!" She continued her volume escalating.

"Under my orders." Dumbledore reminded firmly. "I specifically order Ms. Hyuuga to protect Harry and to deal with any threats that could arise to him. She obviously knew something we didn't and felt she needed to send a warning. Karkaroff was merely knocked out, not killed."

"I hope you're right about them." Minerva sighed.

"They are the best we can do Minerva. We can't take any chances anymore. Crouch said that the Dark one was getting stronger. I can't protect Harry myself so we needed someone who could. Ms. Hyuuga is doing her job." Dumbledore reasoned, but when he saw the uneasy look on his long time peer's face he softened. "I'll ask her about it in the morning alright?"

"Alright." Minerva agreed. Without another word she turned on her heel and exited the office.

~Next Scene~

Viktor and Karkaroff hadn't experienced any injuries of major consequence when they had been attacked and had been released from the hospital wing mere minutes after being admitted. Viktor noticed how Hinata had been acting around him lately; she would shy away from him whenever given the chance and at first he was OK with that. But now he had a strange feeling that something other than her former love for a blond haired boy from her village was bothering her. Today he hoped he was going to find out what that was.

"Hinata!" He called out as he chased her down in the halls after lunch.

"O-oh Viktor." She replied with a nervous smile. He seemed to have caught her off guard which was strange for her. Hinata always seemed to be perfectly aware of what was going on around her.

"Vhy don't you take a valk vith me?" He invited his sprits lifted.

"Um…" She hesitated.

"Listen, you _promised_ that you'd go on a date vith me before the third task." Viktor reminded her

"Y-you mean you want to go on out d-date right now?"

"Vhy not?"

"W-well I'm not dressed up or anything and… and…" She stammered a red flush crept into her cheeks providing a strong contrast to her pale skin.

"You look beautiful. You always do." Viktor finished as he grabbed her hand and started to pull her along. She wasn't getting away from him _that_ easily today.

He dragged her along with him all the way to the west side of the castle. Along the way he could just imagine the looks he was receiving. He was beloved by so many people as their champion, their hero and now he was holding the hand of his rival, the person that everyone expected him to beat. But when he noticed that Hinata wasn't struggling against his firm hold he smiled. Viktor no longer cared about what would be in papers tomorrow, in fact he wanted everyone to know that as far as he was concerned Hinata was his. He felt as if he was floating in the sky, higher than he had ever been before on his broom, where no one could get him and the only other person who was there was Hinata.

But then he felt the smaller girl shrink slightly behind him to shield herself from the stares. When Viktor turned around to see her face he was met with face turned crimson and nervous eyes that met his. At seeing her face he no longer felt at the top of the world anymore, he could no longer ignore what was going on around them. He looked around him and noticed the clusters of people whispering around him. He noticed how loud the whispers were in their great density and the disapproving looks that came from their owners. He looked back at Hinata who looked at the floor.

"Let's go." Viktor said as he grabbed her hand once more and lead her to the stairwell that led them into the vast grounds surrounding Hogwarts. When they reached the grass he let go of her hand and she fell into step beside him. Her nervous stare remained but he was glad to see she wasn't blushing anymore.

"I'm sorry about that." He apologized.

"I-it's alright." Hinata replied.

"It's just I feel you've been avoiding me lately.." Viktor started hoping that he wouldn't set anything off.

Hinata head shot up in surprise but she quickly regained her composer.

"The t-third task is coming quick." Hinata reminded him. "Sh…should we really be doing this?" Hinata questioned her voice remained calm but he could tell she had been worrying about this for quite some time. "I mean we both want to… to win."

Viktor sighed, he knew this was coming but he honestly didn't know how to respond. If he saw Hinata in the maze and it was either him or her who came out victorious, would he let her win?

"I know…. I honestly don't know how things are going to play out in there. But I hope if I ever had to make a choice, I vould make the right one." Viktor confessed

"Me too." Hinata replied. After this exchange the two of them continued to walk for awhile in silence until trivial conversation bloomed. Viktor soon grew bold and held Hinata's hand to which she replied by squeezing his hand as if she never wanted to let go. She wanted to savor this moment as much as possible. She knew that she would have to complete her mission above all else. Which meant Viktor could never win the Tri-wizard tournament. Harry would be the only person to touch the Tri-wizard cup, she would make sure of it she had to. When the gates of the front courtyard came into view Viktor stopped suddenly and turned to face her.

"No matter vhat happens in the third task, let's promise each other ve'll both get out…. alive, Ok? Viktor suggested as he cupped her cheeks so that she was forced to look into the fire of his eyes.

"O-ok." She answered before she had to chance to make sense of what she was agreeing to. A cold shiver had passed through her body. She knew that they could both indeed get out alive but the question was would he want her to when he found out?


	13. The Third Task

Speech Impediments Chapter 12 – The Third Task

Author's note: Alright I've been saying for the last couple of chapters that there was only going to be a 2 more chapters left. I've recently discovered how long the rest of the story is going to be so look forward to another 3-5 chapters! Thanks for reading, reviews are always appreciated!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot of this story and the strange notion that Viktor Krum and Hinata Hyugga make a good couple. I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter!

3rd Person P.O.V

The promising aroma of warm, freshly baked muffins wafted throughout out the halls of the castle and drew Hinata ever closer to the Great Hall the morning of the Third Task. Normally before a mission Hinata never felt like eating much but not even her nerves or knowledge of the events that could come to pass could douse her hunger. Upon setting foot in the Great Hall her senses were overwhelmed. The scent of fresh baked goods now filled the room, but the rest of surroundings were too overpowering for Hinata to focus. All the benches were cramped with chattering adolescents, and the noise produced from such a large crowd filled her ears. It quite reminded the young kunoichi of her first day at Hogwarts when she had been asked to sit down after her demonstration of ability. In both cases she was unable to find a place for herself. She looked for the familiar flashes of red that had guided her that day, and when she found the red-headed, red-robed Weasley twins sitting by themselves at a bench she rushed over.

"F-fred, George!" She called out as she carefully made her way to her friends. When they looked up to see who had called their names she waved.

"Do you mind if I s-sit here?" Hinata asked.

"Why do you even need to ask, love?" Fred questioned.

A smile graced Hinata features as she quickly sat down at the table and began to grab her breakfast from the basket set between the three of them.

"Thanks guys." She replied.

"Don't mention it." George waved off.

"OK so...Hinata, do you mind filling us in on your most recent escapades?" Fred cut in.

"W-what do you-"

"Alright I know we may appear not to be the brightest blokes because we choose to live our lives outside the lines of academic excellence but we still know when something's up." George informed.

"Yah mate, we understood after the Yule Ball because your friends from your village came and quite honestly we didn't want to tangle with them either. The blokes with the dog and the bugs were kinda scary." Fred admitted.

"But after that you looked _off_, you know?" George continued.

"G-guys-" Hinata cut in

"Yeah we know it's the day of the Third task but really we just wanted to make sure you were OK. " Fred said as gently as possible as to not upset her.

"We haven't really seen much of you lately." George added.

Now that she thought of it, she really hadn't been spending much time with her prankster friends as of late. The pit that formed in her stomach suddenly made her appetite go away. The twins had admittedly put Hinata through some pretty tough times over the past couple of months with their joke shop but they had done so much for her and been so supportive she couldn't believe that she had neglected them so carelessly.

"I'm s-sorry guys. Things have been getting...well... a little crazy lately." Hinata sighed. "How have things been going with the s-shop?"

"Not quite as good as when you were there...but better than they were before." Fred grinned.

"Were hoping that eventually we can actually start up a business when we graduate, get a real store!" George exclaimed with a triumphant smile and a twinkle in his eyes. Suddenly Hinata's mind sparked with an idea she was sure to regret.

"Say, do either of y-you have one of the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes shirts on you?" Hinata asked with a devious grin she didn't know she was capable of. Something had changed in the young ninja's demeanor since she had left Konaha. Selling nick-knacks and magical trinkets behind teachers' back with the twins had made her bolder and despite her temporary leave of absence her daring was still there. She assumed that's what she got for hanging around the infamous Weasley twins.

"Never leave home without it." The twins replied simultaneously, both grinning ear to ear. All three of them could tell they were all on the same page.

"L-let's go sell some wheezes!" Hinata exclaimed cheerfully as she grabbed a muffin in one hand and George handed her the shirt which she took in the other. Together the trio walked out of the Great Hall as Hinata pulled the shirt over her head and walked together with twins for what she suspected would be the last time.

~Next Scene~

The halls were littered with students and adults alike and in all the craziness of the preparations, the teachers certainly didn't spot the pop-up joke shop that had been set up in a secluded hallway. The twins had realized that their illness-inducing candies wouldn't be very popular on the morning of the final task because no one would miss this event for the world. Thankfully the twins had temporarily converted their joke shop into a Tri-wizard merchandise utopia. The little square that they had sectioned off for the shop had been split into five different parts, each part held merchandise pertaining to a certain champion. There were pins that displayed each champion majestically posing, flags with their names on it, moving magical temporary tattoos and of course noise makers. Fred and George sat at the sales table in the middle of the square while Hinata stood just outside of the shop beckoning potential buyers. Not so surprisingly, they were making quite a profit.

Hinata was quite flustered when a wide-eyed little first year shuffled through the store's threshold and asked for her autograph. In fact she was too distracted answering the young girl's questions to notice that Harry Potter, Bill Weasley, and Molly Weasley were waiting patiently for her to look up from her task. The booming voice of George from across the shop shot her head right up.

"Mum, Bill, what are you guys doing here?" George asked

"Don't suppose you want to buy a Harry pin?" Fred mused.

"Boys what have I told you about the joke shop?" scolded.

"Well we aren't a joke shop today Mum." Fred explained.

"Nope today we're only selling pure Tri-wizard Tournament merchandise." George grinned. Mrs. Weasley sighed in defeat, she had to admit the merchandise was rather impressive and she could see how much work had to have gone into it. The joke shop merchandise was another story...

"Hinata, did McGonagall tell you the champions met up today?" Harry asked.

"N-no, did something important happen?" Hinata panicked.

"No, it's just the champions' families were invited to the school today."

"O-oh right, Professor Dumbledore told me about that ahead of time. My family couldn't get any time off to come." Hinata fibbed, it wasn't exactly a lie but it also wasn't exactly the truth.

"If you say so, just making sure." Harry smiled still looking uneasy.

"Oh you're Hinata! I've heard some much about you. It's so nice to finally meet you, dear. I'm Fred and George's mother, Mrs. Weasley." cut in now that she thought Harry was finished. She had a polite smile and kind round face. The young man beside her also offered his hand for Hinata to shake. Both of them shared the characteristic Weasley flaming red hair.

"Bill Weasley. I'm these maniacs' brother."

"Nice to meet the b-both of you." Hinata replied shaking Bill's hand. 

"Oh and Viktor said he was looking for you. I think he wants you to meet his parents." Harry cut in.

"What is this I hear; young love?" George cooed.

"Why haven't we heard anything about this Hinata?" Fred mocked.

"I can see it now! They have the cutest purple haired, buzz-cutted babies in the whole world!" George predicted.

"G-guys-" Hinata warned

"Hinata?" Viktor called out from a distance. In a rush of panic Hinata lifted her Weasley's Wizard Wheezes shirt over her head and shoved it into George's face.

"Take it." She ordered as she checked over her shoulder to see Viktor looking for her.

"What is our shop an embarrassment to you?" Fred laughed as he attempted to sound hurt.

"I-i don't want his parents to see." Hinata whispered.

"Oh I see you want to look like a perfect little angel for Viky's parents." George cooed. "We understand, don't stay out too late now!" He called after her as Hinata went to meet Viktor, shooting an apologetic look to Mrs. Weasley, who merely rolled her eyes at her sons.

"Hinata," Viktor greeted. "I didn't see you at the meeting today; did your parents not come to see you?"

"No, my father's quite the busy man. He couldn't make it down." Hinata lied; her father probably wouldn't have come even if he had the time.

"Your mother?" He asked tentatively.

"Dead." Hinata replied flatly. The words still rang hollow in her ears despite the fact she had been saying them forever.

"I'm sorry," Viktor apologized he was quick to change the subject. "If you vould like, my parents vould like to meet you...If that's OK?" He invited.

"V-viktor I'm sorry but with the Third task today I just d-don't think I need anything to get me too excited." Hinata said letting him down gently, it was tough enough to lie to Viktor's face but lying to him in front of his parents was too much.

"So... after the tournament then?" Viktor offered hopefully. Hinata felt the familiar heat of guilt wash over her once more. Viktor was just so kind and genuine to her, if the relationship she had with him didn't all have to come to an end tonight Hinata believed that she could truly let herself fall for this boy, but couldn't do it. She couldn't let herself believe she had a future with him.

"S-sure." She replied hoping that this would be the last time she would have to lie to his face.

~Next Scene~

After dinner, Mr. Bagman led the champions to the Quidditch pitch. The trip to the pitch was so far silent, everyone seemed too shut up in their own ideas to talk; nothing could be heard besides the crunching of feet on the wet grass. It seemed like an eternity until the Quidditch pitch came into sight. Slowly the stadium grew larger and larger in front of Harry's eyes. It was hard to believe that he had made this walk so many times before. When he had made these very same steps before a Qudditch game he felt like his heart was pumping so fiercely it could burst out of his chest at any moment, yet this feeling paled in comparison to the sheer terror he felt now.

When the group finally walked across the former field of the Quidditch pitch even Viktor, the professional quidditch player couldn't possibly see how this arena had once been a pitch. The champions were met with towering shrub walls that seemed to span practically the whole field. In the middle of the front wall was a hole for the entrance into the maze. Harry cursed his imagination when he saw himself entering the mouth of the maze and the maze closing in on him as if swallowing him whole.

"Champions!" Mr. Bagman called arousing them from their deep trances. "In a few short moments the stands will begin to fill. May I ask that you please line up in front of the maze?" He requested.

In no particular order the champions arranged themselves in front of them maze. None of them tried to sneak a peek into the maze as they had tried to peer into the Black Lake during the Second Task. They knew better than to believe that they would be able to see anything, so they waited in tense silence, until Professor McGonagall rushed over from the west side of the maze with Professors Flitwick, Moody and Hagrid in tow.

"Before the task begins there are a few things you must be made aware of." Professor McGonagall began. "We will all be stationed around the maze throughout the task. If you ever feel you are in trouble during the task and need assistance, send red sparks into the air and one of us will come to your aid, is this understood?" She asked seriously. After she received a grim nod from all the adolescents she left without another word, with the other teachers hot on her heels.

As promised the crowds quickly filled the stands and upon arrival created a mass frenzy of cheering that Harry swore shook the ground. Mr. Bagman waited until the cheering had lulled slightly to begin his speech.

"Ladies and gentleman, allow me to welcome you to the third and final task of the Tri-wizard Tournament!" He announced as the crowd roared. "In mere moments your champions will enter this maze behind me, but..." he paused for dramatic effect. "each champions will enter at different times depending on their current scores." Mr. Bagman finished. Quietly Bagman beckoned Harry and Cedric forward.

"Entering the maze first will be our leaders." Bagman began. "Both from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry Potter and Cedric Diggory!"

The cries from the crowd left Harry's ears ringing as he and Cedric reluctantly stepped forward towards the gap in the wall. Harry quickly looked back behind him and caught a quick glimpse of Bagman waving him onward and Hinata smiling at him reassuringly. Beside him Cedric looked back too which was strange, Harry wondered who he was looking for in the crowd. Simultaneously both boys gathered their courage and entered the belly of the beast.

~Next Scene~

As Hinata ran desperately through the maze all she could hear was her slight panting, the ringing in her ears and the sound of feet hitting the ground. The liveliness and noise of the crowd couldn't be heard through the maze's thick hedge walls. Although Hinata had entered the maze only a few minutes before it felt like an eternity ago. But the ninja's mind was set only towards her task, she had to find Harry, she had to make sure he was OK, before it was too late.

Suddenly her ears picked up on a separate rhythm of steps near her. She turned the next corner and started to head west towards the sound. As she ran the sound became louder and louder until suddenly she saw its source. To Hinata's horror those steps had not belonged to a human but an overgrown ferret. Hinata quickly stilled her steps and hoped that the animal simply wouldn't notice her but the ferret turned sharply to face her revealing the amber coloured fur on its stomach and a menacing snarl.

"What the hell do you want?" The ferret demanded.

"Y-you can talk?" Hinata asked the ferret flabbergasted.

"Well I just did, didn't I? Are you deaf Lady?" The ferret replied.

Hinata was shocked despite the fact that this ferret was obviously magical it didn't seem threatening at all, just slightly annoying. As Hinata began to walk past the annoying creature it called after her.

"If you are thinking of going that way you're stupider than you look!" it cried.

The young kunoichi paid the animal's warning no mind until she heard an ear-splitting shriek sound from in front of her. A swarm of three enormous spiders swiftly rounded the corner and started to chase her as she heading backwards, unknowingly back to where the ferret was waiting for her.

"Didn't I tell you sweet cheeks?" The ferret mocked as Hinata dodged her arachnid attackers. "You don't stand a chance!"

Now Hinata understood the purpose of the ferret. She was having an exceedingly hard time concentrating on the spiders with the ferret spewing insults directed at her left and right. With a shout of frustration Hinata gathered her chakra into her right palm and waited for a tight ball of energy to form. When she could feel the pressure building up she released her charka as three sharp needles. All these needles pierced the spiders' heads killing them instantly. For the first time the ferret was silent and when she turned to face it her furry nemesis scampered off in the opposite direction of the corpses.

Without a moment's rest Hinata turned back to the task at hand and travelled deeper into the mazes stepping over the spider carcases. She continued to wander aimlessly deeper into the maze, turning multiple corners until she saw a flash of red ahead. Harry's uniform! But when Harry spotted her he didn't look the least bit happy in fact he didn't even run to meet her. The younger boy just slowly turned to face her and watched her as she ran over. When she finally got a good look at his face she noticed how red his eyes were and how the skin under them puffed out.

"How could you?" Harry demanded.

"W-what do you mean Harry?" Hinata asked genuinely confused.

"You were lying to me all this time?" Harry asked his voice cracking as he gazed at her as if he had never seen her in his life. Suddenly Hinata was all too aware of what he was talking about. 

"H-how do you find out?" Hinata questioned somberly.

"Dumbledore told us before the task." The deep voice of Viktor Krum sounded behind her. They had her surrounded in a long thin hall of the maze there was nowhere to run. "Ve didn't want to talk to you about it until ve knew that ve could be alone." Viktor explained evenly, Hinata could tell that he was trying to keep his anger from bursting out of him.

"Why?" Harry demanded more forcefully this time. "I trusted you!" he yelled finally losing his temper.

"I loved you!" Viktor cried as he grabbed her shoulders and shook her violently.

"How could you!" Harry yelled from behind her. She felt boxed in and Hinata couldn't bring herself to say anything, her legs were frozen, she couldn't move. She certainly couldn't bring herself to look Viktor in the eyes. She had never felt more ashamed, more _scared. _She felt terrified. It was her worst fears come true.

Suddenly logic returned to her; her worst fear come true! Fred and George said there was a beast that brought people's worst fears to life. They had told her something about this, what was the spell she needed? Before Hinata could remember she felt the strong hands of Viktor Krum closed around her throat and begin to squeeze.


	14. Truth

Speech Impediments Chapter 13 – Truth

Author's note: HOLY DRAMA ILAMA GUYS! TWO CHAPTERS IN ONE WEEK! I might just explode. I'm so pumped to be nearing the end of the story. I'm hoping that I'll be able to finish quickly and show you guys this awesome ending I have ready :D Hope you guys enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot of this story and the strange notion that Viktor Krum and Hinata Hyugga make a good couple. I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter!

3rd Person P.O.V

The large hands of Viktor Krum clamped around Hinata's throat making her mind reel as she struggled for oxygen. Hot panic flooded her senses as the fake Viktor lifted her into the air so that her feet no longer could touch the ground. Slowly her vision became blurred around the edges as she felt her desperate need for air. The instincts she had spent so long developing as a ninja finally kicked in as she bent her leg and connected her knee in the poser's jaw. When he let go she spun and sent her heel into his chest forcing him to the ground. With one more rotation she crouched and tripped the fake Harry with an outstretched leg. With both of them on the ground she took to opportunity to run.

She laboured for breath as she ran and could feel a sharp stinging where the creature's hands had been as she took each step. She knew without looking behind her that they were following her down the narrow stretch of the maze. She saw the next fork in the distance; if she could make it until then she could jump behind them once they reached the wall and take them out, all she had to do was last. Then she could catch up to Harry. But running seemed a lot more strenuous than normal considering Hinata felt like she could faint from lack of oxygen at any moment.

Finally she was in the final stretch towards the fork when a silhouette suddenly rushed out from behind the hedge. The muscular arm of a young man grabbed Hinata and pulled her behind him causing the smaller female to slip on the slightly damp grass.

"_Riddikulus!" _Viktor Krum shouted as he pointed his outstretched wand at the creatures. The skin of the imposters slowly turned to peach coloured rubber and the figures deflated like balloons and fell to the ground. Hinata had never seen anything like it.

"Are you alright?" Viktor asked looking back over his shoulder to look at her, his eyes were hard and his jaw set. Hinata took a cautious step backwards; she had no idea of whether this Viktor was truly the real one or another cleaver beast targeting her.

"Hey it's me." Viktor said his eyes softening as he reached a tentative hand to her pale cheek. Hinata lifted Viktor's hand off her and stepped back once more; this time raising her arms defensively in front of her. His eyes shifted down to her neck and his body stiffened. Quickly he averted his eyes from the red rings that had formed around her throat and pulled her into his chest.

"I'm not going to hurt you." He whispered against her hair before she could fight him. Hinata couldn't help but feel safe in these arms, the arms of the real Viktor Krum. No beast was capable of the kindness that Viktor showed her. He let down his guard with her and let himself be vulnerable; Hinata had unknowingly become Viktor's weakness just as he had become her's. When Viktor grabbed Hinata's shoulders and pushed her off him so that he could face her she felt herself longing for the warm of his embrace. She wanted to memorize the feeling of him against her because it might not ever happen again.

"Ve better get going." Viktor commented looking straight in her eyes reminding Hinata of the task at hand. She had to find a way to lose Viktor and meet up with Harry. But would Viktor even let her out of his sight after he had seen the condition she was in?

Together the pair turned left at the fork and continued deeper into the maze. For the longest time they remained silent so they could be constantly aware of what was happening around them until a sharp female scream ripped through the air.

"That must be Fleur!" Viktor yelled pulling out his wand.

"I-i think it came from behind us!" Hinata reported turning around sharply. Viktor tried to speak once more but she silenced him. They remained perfectly still until they saw reassuring red sparks float into the distant sky.

"Good. One of the teachers vill go get her." Viktor remarked as he eased back into a walking stride and continued on his way. The pair weren't too far from the next turn-off but the fork only gave them two options; onward, or backward to where they had hear the screaming of Fleur Delacour. Hinata would have to sneak away at the turn-off after that.

As Hinata and Viktor continued to travel they were even more cautious than before. Viktor travelled more slowly than before and constantly checked his surroundings, and Hinata discreetly activated her byakugan so that Viktor wouldn't notice. When they reached the two-way fork they heard another yell from the other side of the maze.

"W-who was that?" Hinata panicked. It couldn't be Harry; she wouldn't let herself believe that he had gotten hurt before she was there to save him.

"It sounded too deep to be Harry. It must be Cedric." Viktor assured her sensing her unease.

"It... It's like the maze is picking us off...one by one." Hinata noted.

"Ve better get to that cup before it pick us." Viktor stated as he now lengthened his strides towards the next turn-off. If the maze's obstacles were picking people off one by one Harry would have to be next because he was the only one left alone. Hinata would have to leave Viktor as soon as possible. He couldn't be there when Harry reached the cup; he would take Harry's chances of winning away. She hated herself for the fact she would have to leave Viktor alone and helpless to the maze's threats but Harry had to be her priority; her mission had to be her priority. Hinata continued to remind herself of this until she unknowingly reached the next intersection in the maze.

But Viktor and Hinata weren't the only ones to reach this intersection for the hunched and panting figure of Harry Potter stood in the path adjacent to them when they arrived.

"Harry!" Hinata exclaimed. "Y-you're safe." She smiled.

"Well isn't this just a coincidence?" Harry chuckled awkwardly trying to release the tension. Viktor didn't respond instead his wide-eyed gazed was fixing to something to the north. Harry and Hinata followed the young man's gaze right to the shining Tri-wizard cup that stood perched on a pedestal at the end on the path.

Slowly the three remaining Tri-wizard champions clustered together before the long stretch to the cup and stared at the prize in all of its shining glory. All of them had the same question in their minds yet none of them had to nerve to break the silence and voice it. They simply tried to size each other up and figure out what the others were thinking. They were so focused, in fact, on the prize ahead of them that Viktor and Harry didn't notice the spiraling branch that was slowly and stealthily latching on to their ankles. Then, in a blink of an eye the branch shot backwards yanking the two men to the ground, dragging them on their stomachs into the hedge. Another branch attempted to grab Hinata but she was too quick for it.

"Hinata!" Harry called attempting to grab his wand; unfortunately the gesture was futile because the braches were slowly snaking up his body until he could no longer move his arms. Hinata jumped over an incoming branch and pulled out a kunai from the pouch attached to her belt. She ran to the braches attached to boys' feet and started to hack at it. She was shocked to see once she had severed the wood that it reformed in an instant and starting to spread even more quickly.

"That von't vork Hinata, It's Devil's Snare!" Viktor called. "You have to burn it!" he explained desperately as he continued to be dragged along on the ground. In response Hinata cupped her hands around her mouth and focused her charka to her throat. She waited until she could feel the pressure building up against her lips and then breathed out warm flames at the base of the braches until they were forced into submission.

The boys began to release themselves from the now lifeless fauna as they started to stammer to Hinata.

"That was amazing!" Harry complimented. "I've never seen a spell like that!"

"Yah I've never seen someone breathe fire before." Viktor added softly, his eyes focused on the ground. He had never heard of a wizard who could do that. When the boys had finally freed themselves Harry's face became somber.

"Hinata... I think you should get the cup." Harry said. "For saving us and all." No, Hinata couldn't have this, Harry had to win... he had to show them.

"Harry... T-that's really not necessary..." Hinata spluttered shaking her head. "I-i think it should be you, I mean you _are_ the youngest." Hinata failed to reason, she mentally slapped herself for not having a better response prepared.

"Vhat?" Viktor questioned coldly he meet her gaze once more and searched her eyes grasping for reasons. "Ok that's it, Hinata vhat's going on?" He demanded.

"W-what do you-"Harry asked.

"Hinata please," Viktor pleaded ignoring Harry. "Just tell me vhat's going on. Don't pretend like I don't know vhat I'm talking about! You can enchant your eyes, shoot blades out of your hands, and _spit fire! _At first I thought that vas all because of vhere you came from but it's all just too strange. No vizard has ever been able to do_ any_ of these things." He paused and waited for a response, when Hinata didn't give one and Harry remained silent he continued.

"Vhen you first came here I thought your magic was different and I thought.. I thought you vere up to something." He admitted laughing bitterly. "But then I got to know you and I honestly..." He paused once more and took a deep breath as if preparing to say something important. "fell in love vith you. Please Hinata don't tell me I vas vrong about you." He finished looking into Hinata's eyes as if his gaze could peer into her and see the truth within her. She couldn't lie to him anymore. Hinata shut her eyes tightly as she mentally apologized to her village for her failure.

"I'm n-not what you think I am." She started.

"Then vhat are you?" Viktor snarled.

"I'm not a wizard... I'm a... I'm a ninja." She stated as she lifted her head slightly trying to deliver her title with pride despite the circumstance.

"Like...an assassin?" Harry said slowly trying to wrap his head around the idea.

"I'm _n-not_ here to kill anyone!" Hinata replied quickly trying to cover for herself. "A-at least not if I have to."

"Then vhat are you here to do?" Viktor asked looking at her like she was a totally different person.

"I w-was hired by Professor Dumbledore to protect Harry during the tournament and get rid of any th-threats that may have aroused." Hinata explained.

"Ok... but why do you want me to win the tournament? Did Dumbledore order it?" Harry asked appalled at the idea.

"O-of course not!" Hinata let out a heavy breathe. "It was my village. They o-ordered it."

"Vhy?" Viktor asked this time genuinely confused.

"Harry's the Wizarding World's o-only hope if V-voldemort should ever rise again. You have to prove to the world you're worthy." Hinata stated tripping slightly on the Dark Lord's name and turning her attention to Harry.

"Ok but you still _lied_ to us." Viktor reminded her; his facing holding none of the kindness it usually did. She would do anything to make it return; anything.

"I had to." Hinata replied simply.

"Alright Hinata, one last question. Vhat about us?" Viktor said looking desperately for a sign of the woman he had fallen in love with, the person he thought he knew. Hinata knew this was coming, that Viktor would begin to doubt everything that had even happened between them when he found out but she still felt like she had been punched in the gut when he actually said it.

"Viktor I...I promise you everything that happened was _real._ I n-never had to talk to you for my mission and at first I didn't remember? I even pushed you away." She started laughing fondly at the memory. She was desperately trying to conceal her stuttering. "But then we became friends a-and soon more than that before I realized what I'd done." She paused to gather herself; she knew she was rambling now. "The th-thing is I even tried to avoid you before the third task it's just that... I couldn't, I wanted to spend time with you before it all fell apart." Hinata finished meeting Viktor's searching gaze and trying to show him how she felt, how she loved him back. Her heart felt like it could flutter out of her chest when she saw the familiar softening of his chocolate brown eyes.

He quickly turned to face Harry who at the moment was doing his best not to interrupt the heart-felt moment between the pair. Viktor gave Harry a firm shove towards the cup.

"Go" Viktor ordered.

"But-"Harry stammered

"Before I change my mind." Viktor insisted firmly. Harry hesitated for a second and then looked back to Hinata.

"I want you to come with me."

"B-but Harry, why?" Hinata asked surprised that Harry would even request such a thing.

"You've been looking out for me all this time and I don't know how I could ever repay you." He explained. "I hope you saw the friend in me that I saw in you." Harry smiled as he grabbed her hand.

"O-of course I did." Hinata responded feeling a lump forming at her throat. She wanted to cry, cry out of happiness that the two people who had recently become the center of her life understood and forgave her.

Together the pair walked hand in hand down the stretch of grass and when they reached the pedestal they touched the prize's golden handles together; their hands still interlocked.


	15. The Graveyard

Speech Impediments Chapter 14 – The Graveyard

Author's note: It's the moment we've all been waiting for….THE GRAVEYARD SCENE! Hinata and Harry go face-to-face with the Dark Lord! Will both of them make it out alive? (Sorry felt the dramatic intro was necessary). As always thanks for reading so far into the story guys and I hope you'll enjoy what's coming up!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot of this story and the strange notion that Viktor Krum and Hinata Hyugga make a good couple. I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter!

3rd Person P.O.V

As soon as Hinata's hands clasped the cup's smooth surface she saw the world around her morph and blur until she could no longer make sense of her surroundings. She tried to let go of the cup but for some reason her fist would not unclench, it was like her hand was literally glued to the handle. Her feet had left the ground and she was being dragged through a vortex of swirling colours; Harry still by her side.

She wanted to scream but before she could, Hinata felt her feet hit her ground and her tight grip on the cup finally release. The cup dropped to the ground and as she heard a heavy _thump_, she realized Harry had gone with it.

"A-are you OK?" Hinata asked as she helped Harry to his feet.

"Yah." Harry assured her as he got up with a grunt. "This Portkey something you guys planned?" He chuckled nervously but there was no humour in his face. The sky here was dark, it was hard to see very far and surrounding them were the pale tombstones of a graveyard.

"Port-what?" Hinata asked genuinely puzzled by Harry's question. She knew that he probably meant the ninjas when he said "you guys" but she had no idea what a Portkey was.

"Never mind." Harry sighed.

"A-anyways, we should be careful. Someone could be trying to target you." Hinata advised as she eased into a defensive stance and activated her byakugan. If Harry had been startled by Hinata's ninjustu he didn't show it as he pulled out his wand and began to look over his shoulders.

"I get the feeling that-" Harry began.

"Shhh, someone's coming!" Hinata cut him off in a hushed warning. Neither of them dared to utter even a whisper as a hunched silhouette emerged from the shadows. The figure appeared to be a short male but he wore a bulky robe with a hood that hid his face. He was cradling something in his arms that too was wrapped in the fabric of the man's cloak. As the figure travelled ever closer Hinata was surprised to see what the man was carrying; a baby with its bare skin vulnerable to the cold air of the graveyard.

The man finally stopped at a marble gravestone that stood tower-like compared to stubby ones surrounding it. For a brief moment all the man did was stare at Hinata and Harry; Hinata was about to engage the man in conversation when she saw Harry drop to his knees in the corner of her peripheral. He clutched his forehead as he began to wail in pain. In all of her years as a ninja she had never heard a sound quite like the one Harry emitted. Before Hinata could come to his aid a distant voice blew into her ear like a cold chill.

"Kill the girl" a hoarse, icy voice whispered.

"_Avada Kedavra!"_ The short man yelled as he drew his wand from the layers of fabric. A blip of sheer terror registered in Hinata's mind; she didn't know many spells but this curse unfortunately was one spell that she was made all the too aware of; the killing curse. A flash of green light quickly transformed into what Hinata could only describe as a green lightning bolt right before her eyes. It hurled at her in what seemed like a snap of the fingers, instinctively Hinata let the heels of her feet slide out so she could crouch. She felt a rush of energy fly over her head as she narrowly missed the bolt. She forced her head to shoot up and her eyes to stare directly at her opponent. She let herself stand tall as she now positioned herself in front of Harry protectively; he was still withering in pain.

"You'll have to try again." She challenged, not allowing herself to stutter.

"I said kill her!" The hoarse voice commanded once again, a slight tone of annoyance etched into its words.

"Y-yes my Lord." The man replied stuttering in Hinata's place. He lifted his wand to try again at his curse, but Hinata was simply too fast and too well trained to be hit by the spell. She had been trained to deal with much faster. As she dodged each of the separate curse attempts she noticed in the back of her mind that Harry's screams had subsided. Finally she heard his grunts of effort as he stood and began to shoot spells at the cloaked man. What Hinata found strange was the man didn't seem to retaliate against Harry.

While the cloaked man was distracted Hinata pulled a kunai out of her back pocket and charged the man. She ducked under one more curse and sent her elbow flying into his jaw. As he was sent back clutching his chin she spun on her heel and let her free-leg swing out into the man's chest. Hinata could hear the man's breathe being knocked out of him as he hit the ground, the baby nearly fell out of his arms and Hinata wondered whether she should take the enfant away or not. But then the fabric covering the baby's face fell, revealing its moving lips as they formed the words;

"Restrain her!" The baby commanded. She couldn't believe it! the one who had been commanding the man was actually the baby? The baby itself was hideous, it didn't even look human. The face was wrinkled and scaly, and surprisingly green. She had never seen a child like this.

The man struggled to lift his wand one more time and Hinata prepared herself to dodge once more but the spell that the man released was different. It released no ribbon of electricity like the killing curse and it felt like Hinata was being pushed back by an especially strong gust of wind as she was forced off her feet and into a nearby tree.

"If you insist on staying alive, I guess I don't mind killing you second. Now stay there like a good little girl while I take care of Potter." The baby ordered sarcastically, something was not right about that baby. The man in the cloak called it "my lord". Hinata only knew of one person in the Wizarding World who had ever been called a 'lord', and a shiver crawled through her as she made the realization of what that baby must be.

"Voldemort." Hinata spat, as she felt tight cords strap her to the tree. She attempts to wiggled herself free or at least get her kunai near one of the ropes but she couldn't move an inch.

The man in the cloak ignored her as he turned around and shifted his focus to Harry. Harry stood with his wand drawn; ready for a fight.

"Let her go!" Harry voiced clearly.

"I-I'm afraid you don't have time to play h-hero Potter." The man remarked as he sent Harry flying into the tall marble headstone. He too wiggled to try to free himself from the spell's grasp but just like Hinata he was restrained by magic cords conjured from the air. For a second Harry stared at the hooded man and then realization lit up his face.

"Wormtail!" He gasped. Hinata had no idea who Wormtail was but Harry certainly didn't look happy to see him. Hinata desperately tried to wiggle her way out of the ropes' grasp but she simply couldn't move an inch, as she looked over at Harry he seemed to be in the same predicament. Both of them were stuck and Hinata couldn't do a thing about it. She had been assigned to protect Harry and at first it had been her duty but now this mission was personal, Harry was her friend and she wasn't going to let anything happen to him.

"You had better let me go." Hinata ordered through clenched teeth at Wormtail her stutter absent from her speech. Wormtail merely ignored her and set the baby on the ground and whisked away behind the headstone where Harry was being held; out of sight.

Hinata was sadly aware that there was no way they were going to get loose while Wormtail was away so she made a mental note of their assests. Harry's wand was on the ground at his feet, and the Triwizard cup lay in the middle of her and Harry. If Harry and Hinata were able to touch the Triwizard cup again would it take them back to Hogwarts?

Hinata thoughts were abruptly interrupted by a sharp hissing sound. To Hinata's dismay a rather large snake weaved its way through the grass around the marble head stone as his surveying Harry, then for a moment it stared at her. Now Hinata usually wasn't too afraid of snakes but something about this one didn't feel right. Something was unsettling about those eyes. They stared at her like they were piercing through her soul and suddenly she felt her palms break out into an involuntary cold sweat.

The clanging of metal sounded from behind the headstone and the snake disappeared into the grass. Wormtail reappeared with a large metal cauldron which he set in the middle of the space. He busied himself with lighting a fire underneath it and the baby tried to escape its cloth captor, obviously growing impatient. Soon the cauldron was lit and the water began to bubble.

Wormtail went to retrieve his master and lifted it into his arms. Soon they reached the cauldron and the baby was dropped into the boiling mixture mercilessly. Hinata could hear the baby object to the heat of the bubbles at first but soon there was no sound. She looked desperately to Harry for some sign of what she should expect to happen but his eyes were closed and his head slightly raised as if he was praying for the monster to drown. All they could do was hope and wait.

Wormtail then strutted towards Harry as the baby still remained in the cauldron and raised his wand at the grave.

" _Bone of the father. unknowingly given, you will renew your son_!" Wormtail recited as the base of the grave cracked. Mere seconds later white powder floated into the air from the crack and into the cauldron. It hissed upon contact and turned the potion a dangerous looking deep blue. There was no way anything living could stay in water that long without drowning, especially a potion that was as dangerous as Hinata imagined this one to be. At least she hoped.

When Wormtail was sure all the dust was in the cauldron he pulled a dagger out of his robe and began to take ragged breathes as he walked towards the cauldron. He whimpered as he lifted the dagger high and suddenly both Hinata and Harry were all the too aware of what he was about to do. Hinata could see Harry scrunch his eyes closed but she did not follow, she had to see what happened to the baby and sadly she was accustomed to sights much worse than the one she was about to witness.

"_Flesh of the servant willingly given you will revive your master._" He continued as he brought the dagger down hard on his arm which was accompanied by an ear splitting scream from Harry. This must have been the first time Harry had witnessed something so gruesome, and if Hinata could help it she vowed it would be his last. The severed part of his arm dropped to the bottom of the cauldron with a thump and the potion immediately turned a deep crimson red. Wormtail was on his knees, crying in extreme pain, he clutched his now bloody stump and rocked back and forth. Hinata felt sick to her stomach but she forced herself to look, there could be an opening for an escape at any moment.

Wormtail struggled to his feet and slowly hobbled towards Harry dagger still in hand. Hinata desperately fought against her restraints using every possible muscle and bit of willpower as she realized what he might be planning to do. Harry's eyes still remained closed in an attempt to shield him of the reality of what was happening.

"Harry!" Hinata yelled louder than she had ever yelled in her life. "Don't you d-dare touch him!" She threatened.

"_Blood of the enemy forcibly taken you will resurrect your foe_." He chanted. He pointed the already blood-soaked dagger at Harry's forearm as he attempted to squirm away from the point.

"No!" Hinata called as she continued to struggle with the kunai that was still sandwiched between her back and the tree.

Wormtail cut into the flesh and dropped the dagger immediately after words. He pulled a vial out of his robe and let a few drops of blood slowly drip into the glass container. Once he had had enough he scurried to the cauldron and emptied its contents. The potion released a poof of black smoke and began to bubble violently. With his task now complete Wormtail collapsed on the ground and continued to wallow in his pain.

Hinata stared at the cauldron waiting for something to come out, for awhile nothing seemed to emerge from the mixture's depths but soon a pale figure began to stand up in the cauldron.

"Dress me Wormtail." It ordered completely ignoring his servant's obvious agony. Slowly the shivering, hunched man managed to lift himself off the ground and pull black robes over his master's head. Finally, Lord Voldemort stepped out onto the graveyard's cold ground revealing his sinister, hideous features; skin as pale as the moonlight that lit the scenery, snake eyes, and slits that replaced his nostrils.

Voldemort took little time to marvel at his new body and instead turned his attention to his prisoners. Hinata stared at the man in disgust; she was sure she could defeat him if she could just get those restraints off.

"Well, I must say I'm quite impressed that Dumbledore hired a ninja to protect you from me, Harry. Is the old man so afraid of me that he has to hire outside help to do the dirty work for him?" Voldemort mused. Wormtail crawled to his master and clutched the legs of his robes.

"Master... you promised..." He groveled as he clutched his bloody stump of an arm.

"No matter, I'll have the pleasure of killing both of you later. But for now I have a reunion to begin. Wormtail your arm." Voldemort ordered. Wormtail bowed until his head hit the ground and started to stammer.

"T-thank you master." But Voldemort didn't have the chance to tend to Wormtail's wound as he was distracted by the rustling of grass behind him. Slowly the snake returned to the scene as it slithered through the grass to Voldemort's feet.

"Nagini." Voldemort cooed affectionately as is greeting an old friend. The snake stared at Hinata once more and suddenly she felt more terrified then she had been during the entire ordeal. Something was setting her off and she didn't know what. Something was unsettling her. But then she realized it; those eyes... they were _familiar_.

"You!" Hinata gasped in realization. A cloud of smoke emerged from the place where the snake had been which completely engulfed both Voldemort and what Hinata could now tell was the silhouette of another man. A cry erupted from inside the frenzy and when the smoke finally cleared, Voldemort was on his knees with a hand protruding from his chest, the scaly, smiling face of Orochimaru directly behind him.

~End Chapter (I apologize for the lack of Viktor!)~


	16. Aftermath

_Speech Impediments Chapter 15 – Aftermath_

Author's note: Haha Orochimaru thought he could kill Voldemort! Silly Orochimaru, Tricks are for kids! Sorry to say guys but this is the last chapter. Hope you enjoy it! If you guys want to keep reading my stories after this, I'll be writing an FMA and Legend of Korra crossover next (entitled Desperate Measures, there's already one chapter up). I'll be updating that regularly now that I've finished this one, so if you want to give it a read that'd be awesome! :D

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot of this story and the strange notion that Viktor Krum and Hinata Hyugga make a good couple. I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter!

3rd Person P.O.V

Lord Voldemort's body slumped heavily to the ground as Orochimaru removed his bloodied hand from the wizard's chest. His dark robes stuck to his body and they were dark red with blood. The infamous Lord Voldemort now lay flat on his stomach at the feet of his superior, as he moaned in pain and struggled to move. With a forceful kick to the wound in his chest Voldemort was discarded like a tool that had lost its purpose. Wormtail was next; a blur of green flashed before Harry and Hinata's eyes and before they had realized what had happened, Wormtail was on the ground too; the paleness of death quickly approaching. With the death of their spell caster the magical robes disintegrated, finally allowing their prisoner's freedom.

Not bothering to wipe the blood off his hands Orochimaru immediately turned to Harry. The blur of green flashed once again before Harry's eyes and suddenly the villain was lifting Harry off of the ground by the collar of his shirt.

"Well this is what you wizards have been making such a fuss about? I must say I'm disappointed." He chided to no one in particular.

"L-let him go!" Hinata called her accursed stutter slipping in her speech.

"Oh are you worried that I'm going to hurt your little friend?" Orochimaru snickered. In response Hinata simply stood her ground; her byakugan activated and her stance defensive. "Oh no need for alarm, you see I need this one alive. At least for now….."

"What are you going to do to him?" Hinata asked regaining some of her verbal composure.

"Consider Mr. Potter my key to Hogwarts." He explained.

"A key?" Harry asked his voice strained due to the fact Orochimaru was still holding him high in the air as if he were a ragdoll.

"It turns out that only magical people can operate a Portkey. So Mr. Potter you and I will touch this Portkey at the same time and then you're going to lead me directly to Hogwarts. Am I clear?" Orochimaru threatened tightening his grip on Harry's collar.

"Why?" Harry questioned

"Because I want knowledge. I want power and I never get what I want by asking nicely. You wizards just so happen to have the power I desire. Too bad really, you wizards are just too weak to use what you have to its full potential. But never fear, soon it will be mine."

"N-not going to happen Orochimaru!" Hinata declared as she pulled out several kunai. "I wouldn't let that happen!"

"Hinata no!" Harry called; he knew what she was trying to do; buy him time. So he could run away and leave without her. She didn't even want him to put up a fight.

"Harry…" Hinata began her tone firm as if she was trying to rationalize with a senseless child. There was no way they could win. Orochimaru could flatten entire cities by himself, taking down one chunin and an amateur wizard would be like stepping on an ant for him. If he got into Hogwarts it'd be all over, they wouldn't even stand a chance. She tried to plead with her eyes, to make him understand. He had to go back and warn everyone. She saw the fire in his eyes slowly submit and she understood that Harry would grant her final wish.

She took a deep breathe through her nose and slowly exhaled through her mouth. In the few seconds she allotted herself she thought of those she held dear and she didn't even try to deny the person who stood out most in her thoughts; Viktor. He must have sent out the red warning sparks so that the teacher's would get him. Then he would tell them what he saw; Harry and Hinata touching the cup and then disappearing into the night. After her quick musings Hinata had accepted that she soon may be dead, and if Harry could escape it would all be worth it. The wizards would be safe for a little bit longer.

Orochimaru was the first to move and had obviously caught onto Hinata's plan. He threw Harry onto his back into a forceful piggy back position and charged Hinata with one hand forcing Harry to remain on his back and his free hand extended. He was about to plunged his scaly hand into her chest when Harry covered the ninja's eyes at the last possible moment. With a cry of frustration Orochimaru sent his elbow back towards Harry's head while Hinata swiped her foot under Orochimaru's in attempt to trip him. Although the attempt was futile Orochimaru was quickly realizing that Harry was quite a large sum of dead weight. Orochimaru was about to take another swipe at Hinata when a flash of green light propelled past Orochimaru's face.

"You thought you could kill me?" Voldemort chuckled as he got up off the ground with difficulty. He let his outstretched wand hand relax at his side as he glanced at Wormtail's corpse briefly. "I believe you've taken _my_ prisoners."

"I see you're a stubborn one." Orochimaru retorted. "But how long can you stand with an injury like that?"

"What injury?" Voldemort challenged as he opened up the hole in his robe to reveal perfectly pale, unscarred skin. "You'll have to refresh my memory."

"Gladly." Orochimaru growled. "Ready for an encore?" He yelled as he ran his arm through Voldemort's chest once more.

"I see, I remember now." The wizard chuckled as he forcefully removed the ninja's hand. The wound slowly began to close right in front of Orochimaru's eyes. "Too bad that just wouldn't work on me."

"You're immortal." Orochimaru gasped. "And yet yours seems different than mine..."

"Yes. What of it?" Voldemort volleyed.

"Well it appears you've dropped on my priority list Mr. Potter." Orochimaru inquired finally releasing Harry from his back and hurling him by the collar of his shirt. Before Harry hit the cold ground several meters away Hinata caught him and soon set him on his feet. Before Voldemort and Orochimaru could object the pair ran towards the cup and touched its golden handles once more.

~Next Scene~

When the swirling around them finally stopped Harry and Hinata landed in the middle of a large crowd, flat on their stomachs. The crowd was dizzying but this admittedly could have been because of the Portkey. Hinata couldn't make out most of the faces in the crowd but slowly things were coming into focus.

"Hinata, are you hurt?" Viktor asked as he rushed to her side and helped her and Harry to their feet. She nodded stiffly but by the way she adverted her eyes Viktor could tell that something was wrong. "Vhen you touched the cup and disappeared I didn't know vhat to do and-"He took a deep breath as it seemed he was mildly hyperventilating. "I'm glad you're OK." He said as he drew her in for a quick embrace.

Fred and George pushed through the mass of people with Ron and Hermione in tow. Upon Harry's request they informed them that all the champions had made it out of the maze alright but Professor Moody had gone mysteriously missing. After the adolescents had finished most of their fretting Dumbledore cut them off with a sharp clearing of his throat.

"What happened in there?" He asked. Hinata gave him a worried glance and tried desperately to indicate that the information she had to share was best to remain classified but Dumbledore frowned at her slightly.

"They have a right to know." The old man reasoned looking tired.

"It's Voldemort." Harry interjected. "He's back." A muttering of terror waved through the crowd but eventually died down when Dumbledore raised his hand to silence them.

"Is that all?" He asked.

"V-voldemort is the least of your problems." Hinata began knowing the road she was about to travel was a dangerous one. If Dumbledore felt the students had a right to know what was happening then they had a right to know _everything._ "Another man appeared in the g-graveyard we were sent to. His name is... His name is Orochimaru."

"How could this guy be worse than You-Know-Who?" A male voice demanded from within the crowd.

"This man isn't a wizard. He's m-much more than that. He's a ninja l-like me, that's why I know about him." Hinata admitted bracing herself for the crowd's harsh words. She didn't even look at Fred and George to see their reactions, and instead she looked to Viktor who looked surprised to say the least. He was probably shocked that she told everyone she was a ninja so easily after hiding it for so long. The crowd around her burst into an uproar so loud that Hinata couldn't tell if Fred and George's voice were in it.

"Quiet!" Dumbledore bellowed. "Ms. Hyuuga means no harm to us. I _hired _her!" He remained composed when his student body stared at him in disbelief. "We needed someone to protect Harry this year, and I hired some outside help. She did her job and that's all we need be concerned about." He explained clearly leaving no room for rebuttal. The murmuring continued but no one stood to question their Headmaster.

"For now we should all head back to the castle where we can decide where to move next with the situation." Professor McGonagall stated. "All houses will return to their dormitories while the teachers meet in the Great Hall. Hyuuga, Potter I'll except to see you at the meeting." She ordered.

The teachers began to slowly usher the students back towards the castle but that didn't stop several of them from staring menacingly back at Hinata. Harry smiled politely and stood with her as she waited for the disgruntled students to go on ahead. It seemed that a few others had also stayed behind. The bodies were too jumbled together for Hinata to recognize them; she still felt dizzy with all that had happened.

"I guess this means we won." Harry remarked. "The tournament I mean."

"I g-guess." Hinata agreed. She had totally forgotten all about the tournament until that moment.

"Say Hinata? I just wanted to say that no matter what anyone thinks I'm happy you came to Hogwarts this year. You saved my life and I want to thank you for that... well... obviously." Harry scoffed trying to play off the fact he was being serious. "I was happy that we became friends and... I'm going to miss you when you go back to Japan and everything."

"W-well I don't know if I will be going back to Japan." Hinata admitted.

"What?" Harry asked.

"I mean I w-will have to go back to report to the v-village but if Hogwarts is under a-any kind of threat they'll want me to come back." Hinata clarified. "I don't k-know for how long."

"You're really freaked out about this Orochimaru guy, aren't you?" Two harmonized voices interjected. Hinata jumped a bit as Fred and George strutted onto the scene. She didn't expect that they would confront her so soon.

"Y-you haven't seen him..." Hinata replied tip-toeing around actually telling them what he was capable of. They didn't need to know just yet, they'd learn after the meeting. Right now she just wanted them to enjoy the little bit of peace they had left. It was silent for a bit as the twins stared at their feet and Harry suddenly took a strong interest in the scenery, but then Fred shuffled forward on the grass and finally made eye contact with his female friend.

"A ninja, huh?" He asked with a chuckle.

"Y-yah." She replied suddenly feeling like the twins' stares were piercing through her. Would they be upset that she had lied to them for so long? Hinata had to admit they had ever right to feel betrayed. She forced herself to meet the twins' uncomfortable gaze and saw a wide mischievous grin slowly cross the boys' lips.

"Wicked." They complimented.

"W-what? But-" Hinata remarked, startled.

"Hey, slow down there." George said cutting her off. "Look, we knew that something was up with you. I mean you asked us to teach you _wingardium leviosa_ when you can shoot freakin' needles out of your hands."

"We were kinda expecting something like this to happen." Fred paraphrased.

"But I mean we are _OFFENED_ that you didn't trust us." George emphasized sarcastically, elbowing Hinata in the shoulder playfully.

"G-guys..." Hinata said her voice cracking.

"Oi! No need to get mushy now." Fred teased

"Yeah, your boyfriend will get jealous." George added.

"What? You and Viktor are official now? Harry asked

"Vell...that depends... Are ve?" The stern voice of Viktor Krum interjected from behind her.

As Hinata swivelled around to face him she felt a familiar wash of heat rush to her face. She felt she had matured since the times she had fainted in front of Naruto but still the blush came.

"We'll just excuse ourselves." The twins declared awkwardly as they dragged Harry of into the distance. The two of them were now alone, standing in front of the maze in which they had performed the Third Task and survived, just like they had promised.

"Viktor" she sighed. "E-even though I'm only going back to Japan for a little bit, I'm s-still going. You'll have to go back to B-bulgaria and we'll be separated. Are you OK with that?" She reminded him. She needed to hear what Viktor was going to say about their parting before she could give him an answer.

"Hinata…" He started, taking her hands in his and squeezing gently. "Do you love me?" Hinata honestly hadn't expected this. She suddenly realized that she had never told Viktor aloud that she loved him, despite the many times she had thought it.

"Y-yes."

"That's all I needed to hear." He whispered as he cupped her cheeks with his large, calloused hands. He slowly pulled her face closer to his, careful to see if Hinata was going to stop him. When her eyes fluttered closed and he could feel her breathe tickling his skin he smiled and finally he kissed her.

For once Hinata let herself be lost in the moment, and for just a second she was blissfully unaware of the terror that could await her. None of that existed. All there was, was her and Viktor; together.

Them and their speech impediments.

~SPEECH IMPEDIEMENTS FINAL CHAPTER!~


End file.
